A Bond of Thorns
by ScarletRaven1001
Summary: Inuyasha and Kagome are the two elements needed to call forth the Shikon no Tama. The glitch in the process, though, is that he had killed her father, and she would never forgive him.
1. Default Chapter

Summary: Inuyasha and Kagome are the two elements needed to call forth the Shikon no Tama. The glitch in the process, though, is that he had killed her father, and she would never forgive him. Would their unwanted mission help unite them, or would her hatred cause her to betray him to their own worst foe?

oooooooooo

A BOND OF THORNS

1. Blood-hued Roses

oooooooooo

"Squad A, infiltrate the left wing! Squad B, follow me! Scout around for survivors and eliminate them all. MOVE!"

The palace of Calderia was in ruins, what with the attack that the soldiers of Soldari had just launched. The Soldarian king had dispatched his troops an hour before midnight, smack in the middle of a banquet in Calderia, and thus the enemy was caught completely unaware, completely vulnerable.

The Soldarian battle spaceships had let loose a variety of bombs upon the castle before they even landed. Before the soldiers had even set foot on the palace grounds, the palace was already up in flames, and probably half of its inhabitants have probably been wiped out already.

By the time they had landed, the enemy troops have hardly been prepared. They managed to eliminate a large lot of them easily.

Now all of the soldiers had one mission: to get rid of the Calderian King, Lord Higurashi.

Inuyasha jumped over a fallen body as he ran off after his commanding officer. He clutched his rusty katana tightly with one clawed hand, the other covering his sensitive nose. The smoke and scent of death around the compound was already quite overwhelming for ningens, and for a hanyou like him, the scent was more than unbearable.

He cursed softly as he sprinted after the leader, who was running staring straight ahead, not even bothering to glance around and make sure the next corner was without danger. And what did he say? Kill all people? Including innocent civilians?! Ugh! How he hated that dumb old geezer!

'Stupid jiijii. Damn it... why did I have to be in Squad B?' he complained mentally. He heard his fellow soldiers dashing up at his heels. He was the fastest – he was always ahead of everybody else when it came to speed training.

"Ahh!"

Inuyasha turned abruptly at the sound. One of his rookie comrades lay sprawled on the floor, a heavy wooden armoire crushing his legs. All his other companions simply jumped over him and ignored him as they all hurried to go after their leader.

He turned and ran toward his fallen ally, ignoring the shouts of his commander to keep on running in their designated direction. "Oi... what happened?" he shouted over the din of the crumbling castle and its screaming inhabitants. He kneeled before his comrade as the man began to speak.

"This thing... it just crashed on me while I was running. I... I can't move!"

"Don't fret Shippou," the inuhanyou said with a tight smile. He dropped his weapon to the floor and began to lift the heavy ornament with a bit of difficulty. A few grunts and heaves more and the armoire was off the kitsune's legs.

"Can you walk?" Inuyasha asked the rookie as he carefully helped the fellow to his feet. Shippou winced a bit as he tried putting weight on his feet, but managed to stand straight in a few more tries.

"Hai, I think I can. Arigatou, Inuyasha-senpai... for helping me out..." Shippou said as the elder soldier handed him back his sword.

"Don't sweat it kid. Now... which way?" Inuyasha questioned rhetorically, looking around the burning building.

"Oh... are we lost?"

"I guess. I can't sniff 'em out," he said, putting his hand back over his nose. "The fumes are covering up their scents."

"Oh shit!" Shippou blanched as the fact hit him. "I'm so sorry, Inuyasha-san! If it hadn't been for me, we wouldn't be stuck in here!"

"Nah! I told you already, don't sweat it!" Inuyasha told the worried soldier as he strained his ears to pick up any sound. What he heard made a feral grin spread across his lips.

"Inuyasha, nani?" Shippou asked when the hanyou's trademark smirk went back upon his lips.

"I hear some Calderians, Shippou. And one of them is a 'Higurashi' Calderian, to be exact." Inuyasha grinned. He tilted his head to the right, indicating the location of the sound. "Let's go... they're this way."

oooooooooo

"Hime-sama!"

Kagome Higurashi started as the sound of her servant Nazuna's frantic voice was heard in her room. Nazuna was sweaty, panting, and soot covered her face and arms.

As princess of Calderia, Kagome was never allowed to leave her room during banquets and other feasts. She was forbidden to appear at festivities. It was just the rule of the land – she had no idea why this law came to be. She could only appear in parties once she turned 16.

Which was tomorrow. And it would technically be 'tomorrow' in 15 more minutes. Midnight would be upon them, and the vibrant sun of Calderia, which signaled the new day would rise upon them in a quarter of an hour.

She usually hated that law, but right then she was half thankful for it. Half, because she would have been dead by now had she been in that banquet, but such because she was worried sick about her father and had no idea what had happened to him.

"Nani, Nazuna?" she asked anxiously, running up to her servant in panic. "Do you know where father is?"

When the attack broke out, Kagome had been terrified, but had tried to insist that she go and find her father, not minding that she was only in a thin silk nightgown. Her guards and servants had stopped her, and now, she was stuck in her quarters until her father said she could go. She knew why this was – her enchanted room, hidden by spells and enchantments, was the safest part of the palace.

"Hai. Kagome-hime, he is in one of the lower floors, on his way to the getaway spacecraft. He is sending for you," Nazuna paused. "He knows that the way from your chamber to the secret ship is easier, so he only sent me to fetch you. Let's go!"

"Alright. Let's go Nazuna. We're getting out of here," Kagome said, grabbing her shawl as she raced out the door with her servant.

The princess gasped as soon as she set eyes upon the hallway outside her room. Everything had been quiet and safe in her quarters, and though she could see the destruction through her window, she wasn't quite prepared for the sight that greeted her.

All the tapestries and walls were in flames, and the wooden beam supporting the pillars of the castle were toppling down one by one as their edges caught fire. Nazuna screamed from behind her and Kagome turned to find her maidservant's shawl in flames as well.

Kagome ran over to her and grabbed the shawl from the frightened girl's shoulders, flinging it out the nearest window. Fear crawled through Kagome's spine and she coughed violently as she inhaled some of the thick smoke that floated around her like a deadly mist.

Nazuna seemed frozen on the spot from fear. "Nazuna-chan, come on! We have to reach the spacecraft! Get moving, tomodachi!" she cried in slight panic as the girl continued to stare dumbstruck at her. She pulled her servant along by the hand, and the girl dumbly followed, eyes wide in horror.

Kagome had just reached one of the final landings when she heard a scream, followed by her father's frantic voice. 'Otousan...' she thought in horror. She paled, and raced off after the sound of frightened people.

The fallen, flaming beams of the palace walls were all in her way, and she ran off, mindless of the fact that the edge of her skirt had caught flame. She ran at top speed, her panic making her deaf to the frantic shouts of Nazuna for her to slow down. Kagome's eyes were bleary with frightened tears, and she noticed the searing heat of the flames on her clothes when it reached the back of her knees.

"Itai!" she screamed, half-sobbing, half-angrily at the distraction. She frantically spanked at the flames with the palm of her hand, and the flames subsided slowly, but not until her leg was covered in second degree burns. She limped lightly as she ran, trying her best to ignore the flames.

She turned the final corner to get to the ground level as the sun broke the horizon, and froze at the sight that greeted her.

oooooooooo

Inuyasha followed the hushed sounds all the way to the lower floors. He ran at top speed, and as he passed through a certain room, two shrill screams were heard.

He turned to the source of the sound, and saw to his surprise a couple of terrified children, curled together into a tight ball. They were staring at him and Shippou in absolute horror, and he looked down to see what they found so terrifying about them both.

He almost smirked to himself. 'Of course,' he thought ruefully, staring down at the large mission badge attached to his chest. The word 'Soldari' was written on it in large bold letters, right above his own printed name.

He went closer to the children, Shippou following behind him. The words of his commander echoed in his ears, but he ignored them.

'Scout around for survivors and eliminate them all.'

'No fucking way,' he thought in anger. 'I am not killing civilians, and that's that!'

Inuyasha stepped closer to the cowering children, and reached out a hand to touch the elder one's shoulder. "What's wrong?" he asked softly, his face a complete blank.

The child winced, then calmed at his words. "Our parents... they... and you..." he said brokenly, before he broke into loud sobs.

"Gomen," Inuyasha said, and Shippou turned his eyes away. "If you two want to stay alive, you have to leave the palace. Our troops are all over the place, but if you hide away in the lower floors, I'm sure they won't spot you." He told them shortly, noticing that not a single Soldarian was in the base floors.

The children looked at him in surprise, before nodding and fleeing hand in hand.

"That was depressing," Shippou commented dryly. "This is my first damn mission, and I have to have been sent on an ambush."

Inuyasha gave him a half-hearted grin. "Same here kid," he said, before turning his attention back to the sound of fleeing Calderians and their king. "Come on."

They ran on for a few more minutes, both dodging and jumping over fiery wooden frames, before Inuyasha came to an abrupt halt. He smirked, and Shippou gave a small sound of Triumph.

Bunched right in front of a small getaway craft were a group of Calderians, led by their king, Lord Higurashi.

"Where is she?" the king was saying in agitation, before he turned and spotted them. "Soldarians!" he shouted, making his guards turn their attention to the direction the king was pointing in. There were only five guards, two servants and the old geezer himself.

Inuyasha smirked as he ordered his guards to attack. 'This would be so fucking easy,' he thought. He turned and winked at Shippou, then said "Show me what you've got kid!"

Shippou nodded, then turned to face the two guards approaching. Inuyasha turned away from the rookie and turned to face his own opponents with a smug grin. The three guards all raised their weapons, staring at Inuyasha's sword with smirks, and Inuyasha raised his.

With a flick of a wrist and the thought of preserving his planet in mind, Inuyasha transformed his old battered sword into a large fang-shaped weapon. The Tetsusaiga gleamed in the now rising sun, and the Calderians turned to it with horror. Beside him, he could hear Shippou battling it out with the other Calderians.

Inuyasha rushed at the nearest soldier and chopped his head off in one smooth stroke. In a wink, he was charging at the next one, but this one gave a rather short fight. Inuyasha went for his abdomen, but he blocked it, and the hanyou was about to give it another shot when the other guard's sword came down heavily. He ducked just in time, narrowly missing the blow.

He spun on his heel, swinging his sword with him and managed to slash the one who dealt the blow right in the chest. Inuyasha grinned, then turned to the other soldier. He crossed swords with the man for a moment, then, losing his patience, he began to attack furiously. His opponent could barely catch his speedy moves, and in two more swishes of the fang, he managed to mortally wound the fellow. Inuyasha raised his hand and stabbed the guy through, before turning to the panting soldier behind him. The guy reached for his sword, but too late – Inuyasha mercilessly plunged his sword into the gasping Calderian's abdomen, and the guy spewed blood from his mouth before closing his eyes in death.

Inuyasha then turned to the king, who was cowering behind his servants with a shiny sword in his hands. Behind him, Shippou was still struggling with one of the guards. Inuyasha turned to glare at the maids, and they nearly shriveled in fright. One of them had tears of horror in her eyes, flowing down her cheeks like a river. The other clutched at her heart, her face twisted in pain, then dropped down to the floor.

The tearful maid dropped to her knees beside the fallen woman, frantically calling out her name. But she was dead. Inuyasha knew it as soon as she dropped to the floor and her heart stopped beating. He then turned to the king.

Lord Higurashi rushed at him with a shout, raising his sword at Inuyasha. The inuhanyou raised his own weapon and blocked the king's attack, and he felt a searing pain in his groin area. The king had kicked him as they crossed swords.

"Why you cheating little bastard..." Inuyasha ground out as the king grinned maliciously. They stepped away from each other with angry shouts. The king rushed at him again, breathing heavily, but this time, Inuyasha was ready for him.

Inuyasha gave an exerted yell as the king neared, and he whacked at his opponent's sword at exactly the right place – the sword broke in half, and Lord Higurashi's eyes widened in horror as he stepped away from Inuyasha. The king let go of his sword and reached into his robes, pulling out a small dagger. He charged Inuyasha again, but Inuyasha easily dodged the knife with a small sidestep. He caught the king's arm and twisted it, making the king cry out and drop his weapon.

Inuyasha smirked, then leaned down to put his face level with the king's. He grinned at the sight of the man's terrified eyes. "This is for all the Soldarians you killed, Higurashi," he said slowly, then plunged his sword straight into the king's chest as the yellow Calderian sun rose, bathing them in a golden, iridescent glow. The king's eyes widened for a moment, then closed in death. Inuyasha pushed the king's body off his sword, then turned abruptly as he heard and anguished voice yell.

"NO!!"

oooooooooo

"IYA! Otousan!!!" Kagome shrieked as she saw her father's body crumple and fall to the floor. Mindless of the startled Soldarian soldiers, she ran up to the fallen form of her father.

"Chichihue... please wake up! Don't be dead, onegai!" she cried, but it was no use. She knew her father was dead before he even hit the floor. His blood pooled beneath him, reminding her of his favorite patch in the royal garden... the patch of blood-red roses.

Her gaze burning with hatred, she lifted her tearful eyes to the man who killed her father. "Teme," she began. "You killed my father!" she screamed as she let go of her father's lifeless body. His dagger was near her feet, and she picked it up, charging at the man as she repeatedly screamed. "You killed him!"

Inuyasha had stood at a daze as the woman appeared in the doorway. Something about the woman kept him compelled to look at her, made him feel like she was the only person in the damn planet they were on. He knew it was impossible, but there was a certain something about the woman – an aura, that he couldn't help but think seemed familiar... if not welcoming.

Looking at her as he was made him realize that the beautiful woman before him was wearing nothing but a burnt thin dress, and when she yelled out the word "father" as she stared at the fallen lord, he knew – this woman was the princess of Calderia.

Then she turned to him with pure hatred burning in her eyes, and she picked up the bloody dagger that lay by her feet and he just realized that she was, in fact, his enemy.

"DIE!!!" she yelled as she charged, and Inuyasha simply blocked her with his sword. She didn't seem to have been trained. Had she been anyone else, he would have been able to kill her easily. Her attack was too open, and it was the same thing when she attacked again.

Inuyasha had to wonder why he wasn't even killing her yet. She was Calderian; the princess, in fact – so why was she still alive, when she was so obviously a threat to him?

Kagome kept attacking, and as she did do, brushed away some strange feelings crawling through her skin. The feeling that she and the stranger were connected in some way...

Her cheeks were damp with angry tears, and she knew deep down that the soldier was not making even the smallest attempt to hurt her. Kagome yelled and tried to stab him again, but he easily blocked her with... his hand?

She blearily noticed that he had put away his huge sword and was now using his strong arms to block her meager attacks. "Fight me!" she rallied, but he continued to look at her blankly, almost in confusion, as he slapped her wrists back.

Both barely noticed that the Soldarian troops had now come upon them, and they only realized it when Miroku, another soldier, grabbed the princess from behind and twisted her arm, making her drop the dagger. It fell uselessly to the floor as she struggled.

Inuyasha heard Shippou telling the commander what had happened in the room. The commander, Sesshoumaru, surveyed the damage and when his eyes found the gaping hole in the king's chest, he gave the barest hint of a smile in Inuyasha's direction.

"Princess Kagome!" the remaining maid yelled, before a sword was abruptly plunged through her chest from behind. She fell to the floor with a dull "thump".

Kagome continued to glare at Inuyasha, her eyes blazing with fiery contempt. Inuyasha turned away from her.

"Inuyasha," Sesshoumaru began. "You killed Higurashi?"

"Hai."

"Good." The commander stated, and Inuyasha's heart thumped as his half brother looked at him with something akin to respect for once in his life.

The princess was still in tears as she called for the soldier's attention. She had heard his name, his spiteful name from the poker-faced commander. Miroku kept his hold on her as she cried in anger.

Sesshoumaru seemed to have grown weary of her shouting. "Kill her."

Something inside Inuyasha snapped at those words, and he immediately objected. "No! Don't. Let's bring her to Soldari with us. Please, Commander. She may be helpful. Besides, what could she do? I want her in Soldari. Just grant me this as reward for killing the king."

Sesshoumaru nodded, but Kagome didn't care that she had just been spared. She turned to Inuyasha and began yelling again.

"Murderer!" Kagome yelled, tears streaming down her cheeks as she sputtered in hatred. "You will rue the day you crossed me Inuyasha! I vow upon my father's grave that I will kill you, if it's the last thing I do!"

It seemed that nobody even heard her except Inuyasha. Miroku, along with Shippou and the other guards began to drag her away, pulling her kicking and screaming back to their battleship. Someone pulled her hands back and tied her up. The burning pain in her legs that was caused by the fire intensified, but she didn't care.

They were taking her from her home.

She struggled more, screaming at the insolent men who dared lay a hand on her, until someone dealt a blow to her head and everything went black.

"Hojo!" Inuyasha yelled at the soldier who knocked Kagome unconscious. "I wanted her unharmed, you idiot."

"Gomen, Inuyasha-sama! She was being difficult!"

"I don't care!"

"Lock her up in the back room of the spacecraft," Sesshoumaru instructed suddenly over the din of the myriad voices. "We are going home."

They returned to their spacecrafts slowly, and all soldiers sighed in relief as they slowly left the burning planet. They knew that soon, the entire civilization would be destroyed. They left almost no survivors.

Inuyasha turned to face the window. He stared down at the chaotic planet, then stood up and headed for the backroom where they had thrown in the hysterical princess.

He looked into her cell, and watched as she breathed heavily still muttering, calling for her father. Inuyasha sighed as he turned away from her, his mind in chaos.

"Why didn't I kill her?"

oooooooooo

A/N: Revision dated March 22, 2009.


	2. Wounds and Concubines

A BOND OF THORNS

Wounds and Concubines

oooooooooo

Kagome opened her eyes to the sound of clanging. The bright sun that was directly in her face blinded her for a moment, and she blinked a few times to focus her eyes properly.

She was confused when she found herself lying on cold ground. She looked around in trepidation, dread filling her as she noticed the bars on the doorway, before the previous night's happenings rushed back to her.

She blinked her tears back as she let out a small sob, thinking of her father. He was gone... and all because of those damn Soldarians. They attacked her palace; set flames on the temples; launched bombs at the towns of her tiny home. They destroyed EVERYTHING.

Now, she was a prisoner on some foreign planet, where the sun was cold but its rays were twice as blinding. She clutched at the burnt hem of her nightgown, cringing as her fingers brushed the burns on her leg. The pain was intense, she realized that now.

'Happy birthday to me,' she thought grimly, wondering how long she had been out, before fury enveloped her being as she thought of her father's killer – the man they had called 'Inuyasha'.

"Oi, Calderian! Do you plan to get up at all?" a loud voice brought her out of her stupor. She looked up and glared at the dark-haired soldier who had keys hanging from his belt. No doubt the dungeon keeper.

"I won't get up, and you can't make me," she said angrily, and the guard's eyes narrowed in anger.

"You Calderians are all the same... bloody bastards. You're all emotionless murderers. Damn stubborn too, the lot of you. Get up, you stupid bitch! I have strict orders to take you up once you awaken!" he said furiously.

"I won't! What are you gonna do about it, Soldarian?" she challenged, her eyes gleaming with fury.

"Oh, I dunno. For one, I could drag you out of your cell by your dirty hair. Or, I can pull you out of there by a leash. Or..."

"Or, you can just take her out of there nice and easy, so I won't have you killed. Doesn't that sound inviting?" a gruff voice suddenly cut the guard off, making him stiffen in fear.

Both Kagome and the guard turned to the speaker, and all color drained from the soldier's face when he saw who had come in.

"Lord Inuyasha!" he said in alarm, hurriedly straightening his coarse military uniform. The silver-haired man stood there in a strange, old-looking, oversized red kimono, a sword and sheath at his side.

Kagome's eyes, however, narrowed dangerously as the man stepped closer to her cell and turned to the guard. Again, that strange tingling began moving up her spine at the sight of the silver-haired soldier, but she brushed it away. She stood up angrily, glaring daggers at her father's killer. "Teme... what do you want now, murderer?!"

Inuyasha turned to her with a blank face, before raising an eyebrow. He then turned back to the quivering guard. "Well?! What are you waiting for? Open the damn cage! I'll take her up myself."

The guard hurriedly fumbled around his belt, before grasping the proper key in his stubby hands. Kagome stepped back as the door opened, never once taking her furious eyes from Inuyasha. Her eyes widened suddenly when the guard grabbed her arm roughly, then used a set of strange metal links to cuff her hands behind her back.

"Wha- what do you think you're doing?! Unhand me, you monster!" she screamed, before the guard attached a metal chain to her cuffs and gave the other end of it to Inuyasha.

Inuyasha held the chain as he quietly watched the guard take a metal bit and force it into Kagome's mouth, literally quieting her down. He watched as she tried to speak through the gag, her eyes spelling bloody murder.

Inuyasha really didn't like the way the guard was treating Kagome. She was, after all, a living being, a princess at that. She should be treated with respect, even if she WAS from Calderia.

'There it is again,' Inuyasha thought, as the urge to look at her became stronger when they came in closer proximity. What was it about this girl...

He sighed inwardly as she continued to glare at him. 'She really hates me, doesn't she?' he thought in grim amusement. 'Well... I DID kill her dad. That's understandable.'

But what he really couldn't understand was how anyone, even if they were family, could possibly love a scumbag like King Higurashi. 'Oh well. I guess he doesn't torture his family and pull their eyes out when he feels like it the way he does to the Soldarians he has captured.'

The guard bowed slightly as he turned to Inuyasha, who nodded before pulling on Kagome's chains, indicating that she follow him. She stubbornly stood her ground.

Inuyasha gave a heavy sigh as he watched the hime continue to glare at him. He pulled slightly harder, and Kagome finally followed, her eyes baring holes into his back.

She was planning ways on attacking him with her hands tied when two guards suddenly came up in front of them. 'Escorts. Dammit!' she thought in disdain.

"Lord Inuyasha, your brother sent us here to help you with Higurashi's daughter. He was worried that she might be dangerous," the guard explained shortly after giving a small bow.

'Damn that Sesshoumaru,' he thought. Ever since both their parents had died, Sesshoumaru had been taking care of him. Well, care was a little too much. Sesshoumaru had been assigned by their dying father to care for Inuyasha in his death, and Sesshoumaru had grudgingly agreed to cloth and give a home to what he considered was hanyou filth.

His watch over Inuyasha was completely on obligation, but he was doing his job entirely too well. And Inuyasha was rather sick of it.

"I can take care of this you know," he said dryly as one of the guards took Kagome's chain from him. "Be careful with her." They began to walk, Inuyasha in front, then the guard holding Kagome, Kagome being pulled rather roughly along behind him, and the other guard bringing up the rear.

"But Lord Inuyasha," the guard not holding Kagome said. "It is our obligation to keep the younger son the late duke safe from all harm!"

Kagome was surprised at that. 'He's a noble? Then why was he with those who attacked Calderia?'

"She can't harm me! She's a damn girl! I'm not a fucking infant. I've been in more than ten damn wars, and he's worried a girl would hurt me?!" he yelled, not even bothering to glance back at the guards.

"Besides, Inuyasha-sama," the guard holding Kagome said. "Your brother wants us to see to it that you make it to your awarding perfectly fine."

Kagome seethed at that. 'They are probably rewarding him for killing my father, the bastards.'

A flight of stairs was their way out of the dungeon. Inuyasha blinked and stopped walking as the sunlight greeted his sensitive eyes once again. The dungeon was quite dark, and he took a while before his eyes adjusted. He started walking again.

Kagome though, was still blinking from the harsh light when they began walking again. And she had thought the light in the dungeon had been powerful?! Gods, how wrong he was! She tried to pause since she was still slightly blinded by the sun, but the guard holding her suddenly pulled her roughly. With her hands tied up, she was unable to brace them below her to break her fall, and she ended up falling painfully, face first on the hard ground.

She gave a small sound of distress, and Inuyasha turned around to look at Kagome when she whimpered. He found her on the floor, the guard looming over her.

"Get up, you weakling!" the guard roared, but Inuyasha growled louder.

"Didn't I tell you to be fucking careful with her?! Now why the hell did you do that?! Help her up!" he ordered brusquely, and both guards hurriedly rushed over her to help her to her feet.

Inuyasha approached the girl as she finally got on her feet. "Are you alright?" he asked, lightly touching her arm. The girl promptly pulled her arm away from him, glaring at him and snarling through her gag. Inuyasha sighed heavily before turning his back on her, going on their way.

Kagome glared at the back of the man. 'That bastard... how dare he act as if he were concerned about me. As if I didn't know that he was a bloody murderer.' She thought, but somehow, she couldn't dismiss the fact that he wasn't being hostile with her.

Inuyasha led them all to a large white mansion. It was quite impressive, with its tall turrets and hints of ivy growing around the outer walls that surrounded a beautiful garden, but Kagome was too busy glaring at Inuyasha's back to notice.

A short distance from the mansion stood what looked like a larger version of it, only, its roofs were of thick black concrete. It was also surrounded by a long concrete wall with a black metal gate shielding the broad courtyard. Kagome only then noticed the hundreds of guards that surrounded the prison and the walls of both palaces.

Beyond the palace stood myriad, much humbler homes. 'Probably the common peoples' homes,' she thought, then her eyes caught on a large blue building just at the edge of her sight. It was also surrounded by soldiers and it was undoubtedly the main headquarters of the Soldarian military.

Inuyasha yelled at the guards at the gate, who rushed to open the metal walls. He then strode calmly through the garden, Kagome and the two guards in tow.

The hanyou then calmly opened the door, then stepped into the wide entryway as he shouted.

"Sesshoumaru! I'm back!"

Kagome saw the Soldarian commander walk down the set of stone steps that stood before them, his white hair flowing behind him delicately. Unlike his brother, the general wore a fine white haori and an equally pristine hakama. She glared as he descended and he didn't even bother sparing her a glance as he approached Inuyasha.

"Brother," Sesshoumaru said in a monotone voice. "Why do you insist on taking this wench with you?"

"None of your damn business, bro. Is the room ready?" he asked edgily.

"Yes, Inuyasha," the commander said with a tolerant sigh. "I had the room fixed for you."

Inuyasha nodded, then motioned for the guards and Kagome to follow him. They again pulled Kagome along, climbing up the stairs.

Kagome was puzzled. 'Where are they taking me?' she thought as she realized that they were now in a long hallway with doors lining both sides. Inuyasha then turned to one of the doors and, taking a card out of one of his haori's pockets, he swiped it down a small slot on the side of the door.

He went in, followed by the guards, who pushed Kagome onto the bed in the center of the room. Inuyasha nodded at them, and both guards bowed before leaving the two behind, closing the door behind them.

Kagome's eyes widened when the guards left them. 'What is this kusoyarou planning?!' she thought frantically as Inuyasha slowly approached her.

'This is just great!' she thought to herself. Here she was, dressed in a dreadfully thin, burnt nightgown, bound and gagged, and alone in a room with a strange Soldarian who had murdered her father. For the first time since her father's death, Kagome was frightened.

She closed her eyes tightly as Inuyasha knelt down on the bed beside her, his eyes on a part of her legs. 'Gods, please don't let him rape me or anything!' she thought frantically.

Her eyes opened when she heard him speak. "You're wounded," Inuyasha said as he continued to look down at her burnt leg. He then slowly reached up and pulled the metal bit from her mouth. He shook his head as he continued speaking. "Those idiot wardens didn't even bother cleaning you up, the assholes."

Kagome was astonished as he pulled the gag from her lips. Her jaws hurt like hell from having the large metal bit stuck in her mouth for so long. "Nani?" she asked in confusion.

Inuyasha remained silent as he pulled his card out of his haori once again. He then took her bound hands and swiped the card on her cuffs, making them spring open.

"Stay still," he ordered as Kagome stared at him in surprise. He reached underneath the bed and pulled out a small box. He opened it and retrieved a roll of gauze and a bottle of musty red medicine.

"You're human right?" Inuyasha suddenly asked, earning him a glare form Kagome.

"Of course I'm human, you..."

"Good. Then this medicine will work just fine," he said as he opened the medicine vial. "Brace yourself. This will hurt."

Kagome opened her mouth for an angry retort, but her snarl turned into a shocked yell of pain as Inuyasha quickly poured a generous amount of the red liquid on her burnt leg.

Tears stung her eyes and she clutched at her stinging leg, glaring at the hanyou before her. Inuyasha looked back at her squarely as he put the cap of the medicine back on.

"What did you do that for, you bastard!? That thing hurt like hell!" she screamed angrily, making Inuyasha's ears flatten back on his head.

"That thing could have just saved your damn life, bitch!" Inuyasha snarled, rubbing his ears. "Your wound was infected. I can smell it. And that thing stopped the infection."

Inuyasha put the bottle back inside the box, but didn't slide it back under the bed. Instead, he stood up and grasped Kagome's forearms, pulling her up from the bed. Kagome stared at him through narrowed, suspicious eyes as he set her on her feet. He pointed towards a door by the side of the room.

"That's the bathroom. You smell, hime. Take a bath, cleanse your wound and put the robes that I had put in there for you. Throw your dirty clothes into the hamper. Then get your ass back here so I can cure your wound," Inuyasha instructed, earning him a disbelieving look from Kagome.

She was speechless. 'Did he just say that he would clean my wound?' she thought suspiciously, before saying, "Aren't you supposed to wash first before you apply medicine. You already put some on me, you moron."

"That wasn't medicine, wench. That was something else. Go wash."

"Why should I do what you say, you arrogant bastard?"

"Because you are in my kingdom, under my kingdom's jurisdiction, and don't forget that I saved your fluffy ass from death during the attack!" Inuyasha roared, and Kagome drew back slightly. His entire demeanor suddenly changed right then, his voice softening as he said, "So go and wash. Your burns still need some attention."

Kagome blinked, before slowly turning around and heading for the bathroom. She whipped around and stared suspiciously at the hanyou before closing the door behind her. She stared at the door for a moment before turning and facing the bathroom interior.

She quickly stripped before going under the showerhead, then turned the water on. Kagome shivered as the cold water hit her tired body, and she absently noticed that the wound on her leg didn't entirely sting as much as it had when she was in the dungeon.

'Maybe that asshole really did put some sort of medicine on me,' she thought. 'But why? We're enemies... he killed my father!'

But then again, there was that feeling of familiarity that ran through her when she looked at him. A feeling that they were somehow...

'Ugh, what am I thinking?!' She then thought back to what had happened when she had been captured.

--- Flashback ---

Sesshoumaru seemed to have grown weary of her shouting. "Kill her."

Inuyasha immediately objected. "No! Don't. Let's bring her to Soldari with us. Please, Commander. She may be helpful. Besides, what could she do? I want her in Soldari. Just grant me this as reward for killing the king."

--- End Flashback ---

'So he thinks I could be helpful,' she seethed mentally. 'He's taking care of me because I may become a precious info source. Well, I'm not willing to help them. They could all die for all I care!'

Kagome furiously scrubbed at the dirt on her arms and legs. Having the enemy take care of her was degrading, but she knew that there was nothing she could do for now.

Oh, she would have her revenge. But first, she had to gain some good ground.

She was gonna enjoy taking this noble apart...

Speaking of which...

Why would he, a noble, have been in the war, as a foot soldier, no less?

She finished her short bath with a brief glance at the door. 'That damn guy had better not be peeking!' she thought heatedly as she wrapped a towel around herself, drying up her hair and body. She found a rack near the door and sure enough, there lay a set of thick, warm robes.

She picked it up in distaste. It was nothing like the robes she had worn in her kingdom. The fabric of the clothing was rather coarse, like that of common men. Much like Inuyasha's actually. The clothing consisted only of a coarse white kimono and a wide green hakama. She put her nightgown into the hamper hesitantly. She never wanted to part with it – it was the only reminder of her lost kingdom.

She dressed in aversion to the clothing, feeling the material slide roughly against her skin. She paled in mortification as she realized that the murderer had completely forgotten to have underwear ready for her.

oooooooooo

Inuyasha sighed as he heard the water stop running inside the bathroom. 'Why the hell am I doing this?' he thought in misery, punching the pillow that lay innocently beside him.

She had an aura he couldn't quite place... an aura that screamed for his attention. Eyes that begged for his stare. There was something that told him that he had to keep her safe – at all costs.

She was dressing up – he could hear the material as it slid across her skin slowly. She obviously didn't want to have to do anything with anything not from Calderia.

But one thing that the ex-hime should learn to accept was that she was no longer in Calderia. Her land was no more, and she was a prisoner of war. She was lucky enough to have the personal supervision of the duke's younger son, or she would be rotting in a dungeon cell by now... or worse, she could have died back in her planet if it hadn't been for Inuyasha.

The princess slowly opened the bathroom door, staring down at herself in something akin to disgust. She then turned flaring eyes at him as she made her way to the foot of the bed, where Inuyasha still sat.

He promptly got up as she approached, before abruptly grabbing her arm and pushing her down to sit on the bed. He then knelt before her and lifted her hakama slightly, much to the princess' indignation.

"Excuse me!" she yelled, pulling her garment from his hands, her cheeks red with embarrassment and anger. "What do you think you're doing?!"

Of course, Inuyasha knew that she had no underwear beneath the flimsy clothing...

"I am trying to see your wound, bitch! Now hold still. I have no interest in your skinny body," he said in irritation as she huffed.

"Stop calling me a bitch you damn murderer! My name is Higurashi KAGOME!"

"I will once you stop calling me a murderer, wench! Now sit still and let me put medicine on your burns!"

Kagome crossed her arms in anger, wanting nothing more than to bash this man's head to the ground with her fists and a heavy brick. She began to flush when she felt him slowly lifting her skirt again, accidentally brushing her with his... wait... claws?!

"Why do you have claws?" she asked testily, and nearly grinned in satisfaction when she felt Inuyasha stiffen.

"Because," was the eloquent reply. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm a hanyou."

Kagome blanched. "Half human, half youkai?"

"No... half human, half handsome," he said sarcastically. "What do you think?"

"I was just asking, asshole."

"And I was just answering, bakayarou."

Both kept silent as Inuyasha poured some bright blue medicine onto a few thin pads. He then taped the pads onto her burns with utmost care, wrapping them in gauze for extra measure. As he finished, Kagome had another question.

"You're a duke's son, right? Why were you in the war?"

Inuyasha looked peeved. "Because I wanna be a soldier."

"Why do you have that sword with you even when you're at home?" she asked pseudo-innocently. "That's that sword that you used to kill my father, right? I can recognize that battered hilt anywhere... Now why do you still have it in the safety of your own home?"

Inuyasha looked at her sharply as he gave her bandages one last tug. "Because I want to."

Kagome nearly cringed at the venom in his gaze. "I was just asking," she repeated.

"Well, stop asking! You have too many questions!"

He got up and started for the door, upon reaching the door, he lanced back at her, his hand on the golden knob. "Go to sleep, lie down, I don't care. Food will be brought to you shortly. And TRY not to destroy your new room, ok?"

Kagome blinked as he left the room. 'Why that arrogant bastard... wait... MY new room?' she thought in puzzlement. Prisoners of war shouldn't have their own rooms!

She heard him barking orders right outside the door, presumably to quite a few guards judging from the myriad grunts of "Hai, Inuyasha-sama" coming from them. She vaguely heard him say, "Let her out and die a painful death."

Cheerful.

oooooooooo

Inuyasha strode towards his brother's door determinedly. The princess was much too talkative, much too inquisitive and much too arrogant for her own good. If he didn't do something about it, she was bound have herself executed for treason soon.

And that was something he didn't want to even think about. He already had too much on his mind, not the least of which was WHY on Soldari he was even trying to keep her from getting killed!

As the younger son of the late duke, there was only one thing to do... and the solution lay within the hands of his elder brother. 'I still don't know why I want to do this,' he thought.

He knocked loudly upon reaching the door, waiting for his brother's scowling face to appear. He grinned widely as Sesshoumaru popped his head out with the expected scowl.

"WHAT?!?!" Sesshoumaru yelled angrily.

"I have a favor to ask you."

"And I should grant it because?"

"Because this afternoon is my awarding... and if you don't give me what I want, I will embarrass you sooo thoroughly later that you will never, EVER, show your face to the public, ever again."

That did it. "Ok... no need to use harsh threats. Come in, and we'll talk," Sesshoumaru said in defeat.

Inuyasha grinned broadly. "That's what I like about you bro... you're easy to talk to."

Sesshoumaru muttered something about murdering his brother in his sleep later that night as they walked into his room.

oooooooooo

Kagome punched her pillow repeatedly, imagining it was Inuyasha. Oh... how she wanted to get him alone when she wasn't injured... that way, she can give him a proper bashing.

"Damn murderer!" she yelled, and continued punching the pillow as she heard a knock on the door. "WHAT?!" she yelled.

A feminine voice called from outside the door. "Kagome-sama? I'm here with your food and dress robes. May I come in?"

Kagome's eyebrows nearly hit the ceiling. 'Dress robes?'

"Yes, come in," she said in confusion, putting her abused pillow down. She sat as she watched a dark-haired girl, who looked about her age, come in with a cart of food. On a second level of the cart sat a large box.

"Good day, Kagome-sama!" the girl smiled, brown eyes twinkling merrily.

"Ano... hello. Please, call me Kagome. Who are you?"

"I am Sango, your personal assistant," the girl said cheerfully.

Kagome was really surprised now. "Assistant? I have an assistant?" she asked as Sango set the box down on her bed and brought the cart directly before her. "Prisoners don't have assistants!"

Sango looked at her in surprise. "Kagome-sama, you are not a prisoner here."

"What are you talking about?"

Sango opened the box then to reveal a thick clump of green cloth, and Sango pulled it out to reveal a beautiful green gown. It was of the finest silk, and Kagome, despite the finery she was used to, couldn't help but be thoroughly surprised.

"This is beautiful Sango. What is it for? I'm just gonna be sitting around here all day."

Sango smiled as she set about making herself busy with setting the foodcart. "Oh no you won't, my lady. You are going to the awarding tonight."

"Awarding?!" she cried in outrage. "Inuyasha's awarding? You are going to make me watch the man who killed my father as he is awarded?"

Sango smiled unsurely. "Well... kinda. You see, in this land, it is a rule that the awardees' concubines must witness all of her lord's awarding, attend all of his parties, stuff like that."

"And what has that got to do with me?"

Sango braced herself for what she was sure was coming. "Ano... just this morning... Inuyasha-sama had filed you in as his first concubine..."

oooooooooo

People worked diligently in the palace grounds, exchanging small tired smiles as they met their loved ones in the fields.

The peaceful façade that the contented workers had created was broken by a sole, furious feminine shout of shock and indignation from deep inside the palace, making birds flee from their perches in fright...

"NANIII???!!!"

oooooooooo


	3. Reactions

A/N: Konnichiwa, minna! Hehe... gomen for taking so long with this chapter. I've been busy, per usual, and I've also been lazy at the same time. Does that even make sense? @_@ I hope it does.  
  
Anyway, here's the chap. It's a bit long, to make up for the delay. Please read and review. Enjoy!  
  
Disclaimer: Do I have to? *Sees angry lawyers brandishing axes and filing law suits.* Eh... hehe... Ok... I don't own Inuyasha. *squeals* Don't kill me!  
  
-----/---@  
  
A BOND OF THORNS  
  
Reactions  
  
-----/---@  
  
Sango nearly fell on her butt on the floor in shock at Kagome's furious outburst. Sango had initially thought that princesses were supposed to be sweet and calm, but oh... how wrong she was. But in all fairness, Sango thought that she may have reacted similarly if SHE had been in Kagome's shoes.  
  
"What do you mean, he filed me in as a concubine?" Kagome asked in anger, before turning her gaze upwards and yelling, "BASTARD!!! COME IN HERE AND EXPLAIN YOURSELF!!!"  
  
She then turned back to the shell-shocked Sango. "He *filed* me in? Is that even legal? Why would he want me as a concubine? Aren't I supposed to be your enemy?!"  
  
Sango stuttered. "Oh... well, I... He says he has his reasons... I honestly don't know, Kagome-sama..."  
  
"It's KAGOME. No sama."  
  
"Alright... gomen, Kagome-sa- I mean, Kagome. I... to be quite honest, his decision caused a bit of a stir in the senate," Sango said with a confused little smile.  
  
"He leaves me here for three damn hours and now he has another *surprise* for me?"  
  
"Rather. Inuyasha is known to make very sudden decisions," Sango said as she watched Kagome's eyes blank out as she slumped back to sit on the edge of her bed.  
  
"This is why he gave me my own room? He wanted to make me his mistress?" Kagome angrily spat out.  
  
Sango looked hesitant. "I'm not sure..."  
  
"Well, *I* want to know. Tell that master of yours that his lowly *concubine* wishes to ask what the hell he was thinking!" Kagome said as calmly as she possibly could. But Sango shook her head.  
  
"Gomen again Kagome. I don't think it is proper for the concubine to demand anything of her master," she slowly explained. Upon Kagome's dark look, she continued. "You see, he IS officially your master now... something short of a husband."  
  
"Husbands and their wives are equal," Kagome complained.  
  
Sango looked at her strangely, before something seemed to dawn on her. "Oh my, I guess we have a little culture difference, then! In this planet, females are dominated completely by their men. Women could only be above men, if the status is princess to pauper. Common women are equal, and concubines are higher than common women, since they are most likely the mistresses of high authorities. Thus, you are higher than me, but not higher than any man."  
  
Kagome thought a bit. "I get it. So I can't demand anything of him?" Sango nodded. "Well then, Sango-chan, please tell him that I will not dress for the awarding unless he comes over and talks to me personally."  
  
Sango was surprised at the way the princess had called her, and she blinked before bowing deeply. "Hai, Kagome." She turned and headed for the door, but the hime's call halted her.  
  
"Nani o, Kagome?" Sango asked politely.  
  
Kagome gave her a small, semi-genuine apologetic smile. "Arigatou... for the food. And gomen for acting so brashly... I'm not exactly myself right now."  
  
Sango smiled back brightly. "It's ok, Kagome. I understand. I know it's been hard for you."  
  
"I'm glad you understand."  
  
Sango smiled again, before she finally backed out of the room, fully intending to find Inuyasha.  
  
-----/---@  
  
'Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid' Inuyasha mentally berated himself, slamming his head against the hardest thing in his bedroom - his concrete wall - repeatedly.  
  
'Baka, baka, baka, baka...' he reverted to smacking his face with a thick book that had conveniently placed itself on his bureau. "BAAAKAAAAAA!"  
  
"Inuyasha?" a muffled voice called from the other side of his bedroom door.  
  
"WHAT?!"  
  
"Can I come in?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Arigatou!" said voice replied, before its owner merrily pushed the door open holding a pin between his thumb and forefinger. "No need to unlock the door, Inuyasha. I got it."  
  
Miroku, a lower noble and friend of Inuyasha, came in and shut the door behind him. Having gone to the same preschool, the two had been close friends since forever, and when Inuyasha decided he wanted to be in the Soldarian army, Miroku had gone off as well.  
  
It had been quite sudden, and everybody had been surprised when Miroku dropped out from the seminary to go join the army. He had always wanted to become a priest, and though it was common knowledge that he was now a soldier, and not a monk, everybody still referred to him as "the houshi". He was now the local "mystic soldier", as some call him.  
  
"No fuck," Inuyasha replied edgily. "I said "no", as far as I can remember."  
  
"Tough luck. I'm in."  
  
"Fuck off."  
  
Inuyasha moodily turned away from Miroku. He dropped the book he had been holding on the floor and sat on the edge of his bed. Miroku followed suit, picking the book up as he did.  
  
"Inuyasha," the man started seriously, keeping his eyes on the book, not meeting Inuyasha's gaze.  
  
"Nani?" Inuyasha replied, also not looking at his bestfriend. A pause followed, then, Miroku turned to Inuyasha with a serious expression.  
  
"I didn't know that you owned any books."  
  
Inuyasha promptly bonked his head.  
  
"Fucking lech... I actually thought you were gonna be serious," Inuyasha grumbled in annoyance, rubbing his right fist, which he had used on Miroku's noggin, with his left palm.  
  
"I WAS serious, Inuyasha."  
  
"Well, screw it, I don't the damn book. I hate reading. That book belongs to Fluffy. He left it here somehow," he snapped, before turning to regard Miroku. "Now what did you want? I'm sure you didn't come here just to mock my indolence."  
  
"Inuyasha!" Miroku suddenly exclaimed in mock surprise. "You actually used a word that has more than two syllables!"  
  
"You sooo love pain, don't you, you masochistic ass?"  
  
"There you go again with the long words... HEY! I resent that."  
  
Silence.  
  
Then...  
  
"Seriously, Inuyasha. I'm here about the new uproar. Is it true?" Miroku asked.  
  
"What uproar?" Inuyasha asked, already knowing the answer.  
  
"That you have taken the Calderian princess as your concubine," Miroku answered, staring intently at his friend, who was desperately trying to conceal his eyes with his thick white bangs.  
  
"..."  
  
"Well?"  
  
Inuyasha gave a defeated sigh, then nodded. He heard Miroku grunt from beside him.  
  
"Amazing," Miroku remarked, making Inuyasha look up.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
Miroku looked back and met his friend's confused golden eyes with his own brown ones, his brows knitted together in thought. "Amazing indeed. I have never known you to be the type to just pick out girls. Heck, of all the nobles around, you're the only one without a concubine. Until now, that is."  
  
Inuyasha rubbed his temples thoughtfully. "I know. But I have my reasons."  
  
"You DO know that the Princess Kikyo is furious."  
  
Inuyasha sighed again. "I know. And I don't give a fuck about that lovesick bitch. I told you, I have my reasons."  
  
"Which are?"  
  
"Personal."  
  
"Too personal to tell good old Miroku?"  
  
"Since when have you been good?" Inuyasha said sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "And yes, they're THAT personal. And I'm still kinda beating myself over it. It had seemed such a great idea a couple of hours ago, but now... maybe I shouldn't have been so hasty."  
  
"Inuyasha, the council is still puzzling over it. And I'm assuming that the Princess Kagono doesn't know yet?" Miroku said, earning him a raised brow from Inuyasha.  
  
"It's KAGOME you moron," Inuyasha replied, turning away again.  
  
"Whatever. Anyway... does she know?"  
  
Both heads turned as they heard an outraged female shout resound from somewhere within the palace.  
  
*"NANIII???!!!"*  
  
Inuyasha groaned, covering his face with his hands.  
  
"I guess she knows now?" Miroku said with a sweatdrop. He looked at the problematic hanyou as he continued to moan and groan his distress.  
  
"I'll have to explain it to her sometime anyway. Gods... Poor Sango..." Inuyasha said to himself, but Miroku heard.  
  
"What do you mean, "poor Sango"? What did you do to my butterfly?"  
  
Inuyasha looked at him with a raised brow. "She's not *your* Sango. And it wasn't me... I sent her off as Kagome's assistant."  
  
"Why Sango? Why didn't you send one of the other maids?" Miroku asked.  
  
"I don't trust the other maids. They're all dumb. I trust Sango, and I think she'd get along with Kagome fine. And I needed someone with battle training because she also had to be the one to tell Kagome..."  
  
Miroku went silent. "Kagome-sama isn't THAT violent, is she?"  
  
"I dunno. First time I met her, she was trying to kill me, but she really sucked at it, so it's nothing Sango can't handle. She's from a family of taijiya, after all," Inuyasha said fondly, lying back and folding his arms beneath his head.  
  
Miroku regarded him. "She'd better be alright, Inuyasha, or..."  
  
"Or you'll have no one to grope?"  
  
"Sorta. She's my favorite helper, and you know that."  
  
Both men began to laugh at that.  
  
"But seriously," Miroku suddenly said. "Princess Kikyo has been lusting over you since the day she can walk. And I heard that she had thrown a fit when she heard about your filing."  
  
Inuyasha snorted. "I bet she did. Have you seen how she looked at me when I came to court with my brother last night to discuss the awarding? It was creepy, man. It was like she was gonna swallow me whole or something..."  
  
"Man, I'm glad I'm not you... Princess Kikyo is creepy."  
  
"And this is creepier monk... we're both nobles and you know what that means?" Inuyasha said, his eyes slits of disapproval.  
  
"Oh, gods! I just realized... You two could be distantly related!" Miroku exclaimed, and both again broke into laughter.  
  
But the laughter didn't last long...  
  
"Inuyasha?" Sango's voice piped up from behind the door, and Inuyasha visibly stiffened.  
  
'Chikuso,' he thought. "Come in..."  
  
-----/---@  
  
Inuyasha gulped loudly as he reached Kagome's door. Sango had told him that the princess wished to see him about his sudden decision, and now he was queasy as hell. He had no idea how he could possibly explain himself - the truth was a bit fuzzy even to him.  
  
He took a deep breath as he reached for the knocker. She had officially been his concubine for the past hour. He didn't really need to knock, but... 'Hell, just knock, dammit!' he thought.  
  
He drew another deep breath before knocking once. "Hey... you in there?"  
  
Inside the room, Kagome tensed. Here he was, the man who had claimed her as his mistress, the man who killed her father, the one who had turned her world upside down. "Yeah."  
  
Inuyasha slowly opened the door, bracing himself, his eyes on his shoes. He looked up just in time to see a bedside lamp flying through the air towards his face.  
  
He barely dodged it, and he completely closed the door as he fixed Kagome, who was sitting calmly by the edge of her bed, with a furious look. "What did you do that for, wench?"  
  
"Duh! I was trying to kill you!" she yelled. "What the hell possessed you to... to... ugh!!! Why do you want ME as your mistress!"  
  
"I..."  
  
"Listen, I don't care if I'm a prisoner of war or whatever. I will NOT be your WHORE!"  
  
"Will you just let me explain for a sec?!" Inuyasha bellowed, effectively shutting her up.  
  
Kagome gulped. Sure, she hated him, but she had to obey him before she finally managed to outsmart and kill him. He WAS stronger than her. "Ok."  
  
"Good," Inuyasha said. "I dunno if you'll believe me, but I'm telling you... this is for your own good."  
  
"How could your plan to make me your whore possibly be good for me?"  
  
"I thought I told you to fucking listen to me?"  
  
Kagome took a deep breath. "Ok. What?"  
  
"Face it bitch. You're arrogant, testy, nosy much too feisty... this planet has a few certain rules about the place of women in this society," Inuyasha began to explain, much to Kagome's indignation. "You say a harsh word to the wrong person and they could have you executed in the town plaza for treason in the blink of an eye. No masks."  
  
Kagome gasped. Was their society really THAT cruel?  
  
"By making you my... my written concubine," Inuyasha gulped. "I'd be making you my legal possession. That way... if you talk inappropriately or anything, they wouldn't be able to have you executed without my command. They couldn't touch something of my property unless I agree. I was..."  
  
Inuyasha trailed off. He couldn't say it. He didn't even understand why he had done it... 'I was trying to protect you...' he finished mentally. But why DID he feel so strangely about this girl?  
  
He should definitely ask Kaede about this. Maybe the princess had put him under some sort of spell?  
  
Kagome still looked doubtful. "LOOK!" Inuyasha yelled in exasperation. "I'm not doing this to get into your pants, ok? I don't care about your pussy. I just wanted to keep you alive! SO just dress up for the damn awarding! I'm doing this for you!"  
  
Now THAT surprised her. It was insulting - in a way - but still. He wanted to keep her alive.  
  
It was almost as if he wanted to *protect* her.  
  
She snickered. 'Now that's a laugh. Considering that he had just obliterated my entire planet and family.' She straightened from her position on her bed, sitting properly to look him in the eye. "Why would you want me to stay alive then, huh? You killed my father, destroyed my people! Ravaged my land oh-so-joyfully, and..."  
  
"You're WRONG!"  
  
Kagome shut up at the sharp shout. Inuyasha looked about ready to kill, and she sure didn't want to be at the receiving end of that hideous sword of his.  
  
Inuyasha slumped. "You're wrong... I didn't enjoy killing your people. I *hated* it! I became a soldier not so I could kill innocent people. I only wanted to avenge my parents and rid the world of scum... that's why I enjoyed gutting your father, but not the others."  
  
Kagome rose in fury. "You ASSHOLE! How dare you call my father that! He was an honorable man! He loved his people and did everything for us! He..."  
  
"He killed hundreds of innocent Soldarians out of a whim!" At Kagome's shocked silence, he continued. "I guess daddy never told you, huh? Do you remember that our planets used to be at peace? When the Galaxia gave their tenth decree, Higurashi decided that Soldarians in Calderia were a threat, and he gathered them all and..."  
  
Kagome looked shocked at what he had said. "That's not true," she replied. "He executed them because they had broken our laws. He told me so... I was at the execution... There wasn't hundreds of them..."  
  
"Because those who he publicly executed were only a tiny bit of those that he had already tortured to death - many of which were kids and women," he shouted. "I hate to break it to you, princess, but your father was not a good man."  
  
"You're LYING!"  
  
"Try me," Inuyasha glared at her. Kagome looked horrified, and something inside him twisted in emotion. He... did not want to see her like that...  
  
"Believe me, I'm only doing this because I want to keep you safe," Inuyasha said calmly, closing his eyes with the effort to stay focused on his words. When he opened them, Kagome's eyes were brimming with tears.  
  
"Please believe me princess. And I'm sorry. Don't cry!" he said in panic as he slowly walked over to her. He really hated seeing women cry! He raised a clawed hand and carefully brushed the few fallen tears away. "I hated your father... and your government. But I never hated all Calderians. I never wanted to kill any innocent person. And saving you..."  
  
Kagome sniffled. "Why? Why did you want to save me?"  
  
"Because it's the least I can do, to compensate for killing so many people. It's a selfish compensation, I know! But... I helped with those bombs, you know?! I know they will never forgive me, but I want to do all I can... because I seriously didn't want the whole race to be destroyed. So I decided to at least keep one alive."  
  
Kagome stepped away from him. "All my people are dead. I have nothing to live for..."  
  
Inuyasha bristled. "Don't think like that! I made you my concubine so that you can have more rights than the common women. You can start again in here."  
  
He took a deep breath, still facing her, but his eyes refused to meet hers. "I know I ruined your life when I killed your father, but I'll tell you this... I'll keep you alive no matter what. As my concubine, you're supposed to be mine. I won't take your freedom from you... I don't intend to use you. You can live in comfort. They can't do anything to you if I don't agree to it. And if push comes to shove..."  
  
Kagome looked puzzled as Inuyasha turned and began to head for her door. "Nani?"  
  
"I'll fight for you."  
  
Kagome froze. 'Did he just say...'  
  
Inuyasha faced the door, his hand on the unlocking mechanism. His mind was swirling... did he really mean it that way? "So please, don't make this too hard. Just dress up for later. You don't even have to be in the hall as I am being awarded. You probably wouldn't want to hear the reason why I am getting a reward." He refused to meet her eyes.  
  
Kagome cringed. "I think I already know why."  
  
"Yeah. But still... just show up," Inuyasha said, before opening the door and stepping out. "I'll send Sango back in here," he told her, still not looking at her, before completely heading out of the room.  
  
-----/---@  
  
Kagome stood shocked, staring at the door.  
  
*I'll fight for you.*  
  
The words refused to leave her mind. She couldn't figure it out... why was her heart thumping so fast? They were just a few words! Probably meaningless, even, since they came from her father's murderer. Heck, he had never even called her by her proper name yet!  
  
But still, the words echoed repeatedly in her head. She could feel her cheeks heating up as she sat back down on the edge of the bed, staring at the green dress that still lay on her bed. She shook her head furiously. She HATED him! Why did those words seem to mean so much?  
  
Her musings were cut off when a knock came on her door.  
  
-----/---@  
  
Inuyasha slapped himself - hard. What the hell had come out of his mouth when he was talking to Kagome? He hadn't planned on saying any of that! Heck, he didn't know that his reasons for making her his concubine were THAT deep!  
  
He had left the guards by her door with explicit orders to let only Sango come in to help Kagome dress.  
  
Were those his real reasons? Or did those just come out of his mouth as he spoke to her? He didn't really have a concrete reason. All he knew was that he didn't want her dead. At least THAT was true...  
  
Inuyasha racked his brain for the truth as he took the familiar steps up to the old miko's shrine. Kaede, one of Soldari's most powerful mikos, used to be his short term baby sitter, and he and the old hag were rather close. He usually went to her in times of distress, and now was DEFINITELY one of those times!  
  
The princess gave him a strange feeling - he had actually gotten it since he first laid eyes upon her. Something was different. He couldn't quite place it, but something was strange. He had felt inexplicably drawn to her, and she seemed to radiate an unfamiliar aura.  
  
'Kaede would know,' he thought, pulling a small piece of cloth from his robes. It was a tiny part of the princess' nightdress. He had nicked it off with his claws as he was pouring the red disinfectant on her leg. He knew that he would need it if he wanted to figure out what seemed off about her. Kaede could help him.  
  
-----/---@  
  
"Father! Reject the amendment!" Princess Kikyo cried in fury, slamming her fists on her father's desk as fake tears fell down her cheeks. "I don't want Inu to have a concubine!"  
  
King Onigumo scratched his head in turmoil, his graying hair revealing a small bald patch on his head. "But Kikyo-chan! It has already been approved and passed!"  
  
"You're the KING!!! Overrule it or something!" she yelled angrily, her cold gray eyes flashing in annoyance.  
  
"The motion has made no violations! I cannot overrule it! Kikyo dear, why are you so upset about this?! It is just a concubine!"  
  
"She's an alien!"  
  
"SO WHAT? He filed her in, and Inuyasha is more than able to handle a concubine."  
  
"You KNOW why!!!"  
  
Onigumo sighed heavily. "Kikyo, your infatuation with Inuyasha will lead you nowhere! I cannot overrule this order, and that is final!"  
  
Kikyo screamed angrily before stomping out of her father's room. She pulled loose strands of her long dark hair behind her ears, adjusting the bodice of her short gray dress. Her smooth pale skin contrasted with the dark color of her clothing, making her look even paler.  
  
She stomped angrily through the brightly lit palace, glaring at the pure white walls and the furnishings that lined it. She snarled at her reflection as she passed a mirror.  
  
'What can he NOT see in me?' Kikyo angrily asked herself. 'I'm beautiful! And I'm powerful. If he takes me, he will be the king!' she raged, before stomping off in the direction of the palace's main doors.  
  
"Get out of my way!" she yelled as a few guards stood at attention and saluted as she stepped outside the palace, wincing against the bright light. She headed determinedly towards Inuyasha's palace, ignoring the guards as they told her to take the royal carriage.  
  
She marched ahead rapidly. 'Time to pay a slutty little alien princess a visit.'  
  
-----/---@  
  
A/N: I know some of you probably think that Kagome is a bit OOC, especially during her and Sango's early conversation, but hey, if you found out that you were to be your worst enemy's mistress, wouldn't you be pissed?  
  
Anyway, I know I used a few new terms here, but I will explain them all next chapter. Promise.  
  
Responses!!!  
  
Jiro1: Yeah! You are too? Oh my God... This is so cool! I'm glad you like my fic. Thanks!  
  
Fetchboy69: THANKS! I'm glad you like my fics so much! Here's the chap!  
  
Chevere: Glad you liked it!  
  
Nicole: Oh, it's not stupid at all! A concubine is something like a mistress or a secondary wife.  
  
RavenShadow: Here's the update! I'm glad you like the story!  
  
Jobie: Well, there's Miroku! ^_^ I'm glad you like my fic. Thanks!  
  
Iden's Garden: Whoa! Easy on the capslock! ^_^ Here's the chap. I hope you like it!  
  
Slvrstarlight: I'm glad I cleared up the confusion. And yeah, it would take them a while.  
  
Hanamaru285: Thanks! Glad you liked it. Here's the chap!  
  
That's it for the chap! I hope you all liked it. Anyway, thanks for reading. Please review!  
  
SR1001 


	4. Preparations

A/N: Ahahaha... gomen. I know I reeeeally took a long time with this chap, and I'm sooo sorry! I've been busy these past few weeks, what with my exams and reports and stuff, and I still had to go convince the committee to take me out of their final chorale list. Darn!  
  
Anyway, I have had exactly a dozen emails asking whether this fic would be containing a lemon in later chapters. Just to set the record straight, YES it will, but I'll be posting the adult version on ANOTHER site. I'll only be posting the R versions here.  
  
And, as I usually do, I will be changing the characteristics of the Shikon no Tama, as usual. I hope no one minds! ^_^  
  
Thanks to all those who read and reviewed my previous chapters. Please read and review this one too. Arigatou! Enjoy!  
  
-----/---@  
  
A BOND OF THORNS  
  
Preparations  
  
-----/---@  
  
"Kikyo-sama!"  
  
All guards at the Inuyoukai manor began bowing diligently at the sight of the princess. Said princess just took one short look at each of them in turn, before letting her distaste at their presence facially obvious. "Where is Inuyasha?" she asked.  
  
"Permission to speak, your highness," said one guard, bowing low and waiting for the acknowledgement. Kikyo nodded, and he continued. "He went off to visit Kaede obaa-sama, Kikyo-hime."  
  
She huffed angrily. "Ok." She paused. "Well? Let me in, you imbeciles!"  
  
"Hai, Kikyo-sama!"  
  
She stood back as the guards pulled the gates apart as quickly as they possibly could, tripping even, in their haste to let the woman in. She flipped her hair in annoyance as she passed by, then marched determinedly towards the house's front doors.  
  
The two guards standing watch by the massive ebony doors stepped back, bowing courteously as they let her step in. She gave them both a short uninterested glance as she passed them, entering the wide entryway. Maids bustled around at the sight of her, more than a few scampering about to call for Sesshoumaru, the master of the house.  
  
Kikyo erased the smug grin from her face, replacing it with a hurt, pouty one once the man showed up at the head of the stairs.  
  
Sesshoumaru looked down at the princess, groaning internally as he flashed her a small courteous smile. 'I know that pout,' he thought in slight disdain. 'She wants something, and I think I know just what that something is. Or, more accurately, WHO it is.'  
  
"Kikyo-hime, what may have merited this house with your presence?" he asked, bowing low as he reached her.  
  
Kikyo crossed her arms, stamping one foot impatiently in front of the other. "This is not a courtesy call, I'm afraid. I'm here to see your brother."  
  
"I don't think he's here, Kikyo."  
  
"He left. The guards told me. But just so this trip would not be an entire waste..." Kikyo said, while Sesshoumaru mentally rolled his eyes.  
  
'Let me guess,' he thought. 'Now you wish to see the Calderian princess.'  
  
"...I thought maybe it would be wise if I went to see that alien princess. You DO know where the bitc-, I mean, the princess is, ne?" she said, and Sess nearly smirked.  
  
'Thought so,' he thought. "Well, I happen to know that my brother has prepared a room for her on the second landing. After all, she IS his CONCUBINE, and he has to care for her. And you know Inuyasha..." he stressed the word concubine, nearly bursting into laughter when Kikyo interrupted.  
  
"I know! Whatever. I want to see her. NOW!"  
  
Sess shrugged indifferently, turning to lead the princess up the long, slippery marble staircase. 'I hope she slips and falls,' he thought in irritation, cursing the red stair carpet that lay on the steps. Kikyo had never really done anything to him, but for some reason, the spoiled, whiny princess always managed to get on his last nerves.  
  
He stopped in front of the door of the largest guestroom in the house. On both sides of the door stood two tall guards, who immediately bowed low upon seeing the princess and their master.  
  
"This is where she is," Sess said, noticing with unnoticeable glee that the princess' cheeks had heated up, her eyes blazing slits as she stared at the door.  
  
"Thank you," she said, not looking at him. She turned to both guards. "Let me in!"  
  
"Permission to speak, ma'am."  
  
"WHAT?!"  
  
"We were ordered by Lord Inuyasha to let no one but Sango-san into this room."  
  
"Do you wish to die for treason?" Kikyo asked angrily, and the guards shook his head. "Then let me in, you moron! I'm the princess! No one is above me!"  
  
"Your father is," Sess murmured. Kikyo didn't hear him though.  
  
Both guards looked at each other reluctantly, before turning towards the door, fumbling for the right key. The door had a special lock... one that could be opened only by its proper key, and Inuyasha's personal ID tag.  
  
Kikyo smirked as the door swung open.  
  
-----/---@  
  
"Inuyasha? What brought you here?" Kaede asked, merrily pushing back the cottage door to let the hanyou in. Kaede didn't even begin to miss the troubled expression on the boy's face. She led him over to the low couch in the center of the room and took her place on another low stool. "Do you want some tea?"  
  
"No thanks. Kaede, I have a bit of a problem..." he said slowly, before sitting and taking out a tattered piece of cloth.  
  
"I noticed that, young man," she said with a smile, before noticing the cloth. "And what do we have here?"  
  
Inuyasha handed the old woman the piece of cloth. Kaede looked at it in confusion for a while, before her eyes widened in surprise.  
  
"This cloth..." Kaede began, while Inuyasha, in his unease, stood and went to the nearest window to look out the yard.  
  
"It's part of someone's clothes. I thought you might be able to help me figure something out," Inuyasha said, not daring to meet the confused lady's questioning gaze.  
  
Kaede looked between him and the cloth repeatedly, before asking, "To whom do those clothes belong to?"  
  
Inuyasha hesitated. "The Calderian princess..."  
  
"Honto ni?"  
  
"Yeah," he replied, looking back at his old babysitter. "There's something different about her... Definitely strange. I felt it back when we were still in Calderia. Do you think..."  
  
"She's a miko, isn't she?" Kaede suddenly asked, making Inuyasha gape at her.  
  
"What? I dunno. Is she? I came to ask YOU, ya' know?! I can't sense this type of thing."  
  
Kaede put the cloth on the table. "What made you think her strange?"  
  
"I dunno either. Call me stupid, but I don't know. I just felt like I had to keep her alive... protect her," Then as an afterthought, he said, "She cast a spell on me, didn't she?"  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
"Nothin'," he said, desperately hiding a blush. Where had that thought come from?  
  
Kaede sat back and regarded him seriously. "Well... from what I can tell through this cloth, she is certainly not an average princess. I would have to personally meet her. She may have some deeply buried reiryoku..."  
  
"The way you said *I* might?"  
  
"Hai," Kaede answered. "It may be the one reason why you feel strangely drawn to her..."  
  
"I do not feel drawn to her."  
  
"And you think I would believe you because...?"  
  
"Shut up, baabaa."  
  
"Oh, come on, Inuyasha!" the old lady exclaimed. "I know you like the back of my hand! Why would you have made her your concubine?"  
  
"You know about that?" Inuyasha asked incredulously.  
  
"Who doesn't?" Kaede scoffed. "Anyway, yes, she may have miko powers."  
  
Inuyasha tensed. "Are her powers... like mine? At all?"  
  
Kaede nodded. "I believe it is. But as I said, I have to meet her first to be able to tell for sure. But if my suspicions are correct, then you know what that means..."  
  
Inuyasha remained silent as Kaede continued. "I believe that with her being here, we have completed the key to unlocking the Shikon no Tama."  
  
Inuyasha was silent. "You said I was half..."  
  
"And we have just found the other..."  
  
Both were silent. Then...  
  
"Do you think HE knows by now?" (A/N: Can anybody guess who HE is? Easy, really...) Inuyasha asked. "Could he have sensed it by now? He's been after the jewel for as long as I can remember, and if he does..."  
  
Kaede shrugged. "I don't know, Inuyasha. But if he does..."  
  
"Shit."  
  
-----/---@  
  
Red eyes narrowed as he found what he had been feeling for. He looked around the dark room where he was presently meditating.  
  
"Ku ku ku. I think I have finally found the key. Who would have thought that the key was in the palace, right beside its other half," he mused.  
  
The strong reiryoku had appeared all to suddenly only the night before, and he just knew that it was what he had been searching for. The key...  
  
If only he could get to it...  
  
"I will have the jewel, Inuyasha. You may hold half the key, but I will still have it... Now nothing can stop me..."  
  
-----/---@  
  
"HEY! Can't a girl get some privacy here?!" Kagome shrieked in indignation when the door to her room suddenly opened. She jerked back from her position on her bed to look towards the door, but what she saw made her stand straight off the bed and grow paler than the white castle walls.  
  
"Oh my god..." she whispered, eying the figure of the woman standing by the door, looking as shocked as she was. Kagome's mind was spinning. 'Am I... looking at MYSELF?'  
  
She can barely breathe as she seemingly watched herself walk from the door towards her, a look of pure shock on both their faces. As the other woman came closer though, Kagome realized that she had not been hallucinating... the woman was not her double.  
  
But it was still shocking, to say the least. They looked almost EXACTLY alike... putting an identical twin pair's likeness to shame. The difference though, was discernable now that they were near.  
  
The woman, who Kagome only now noticed to be wearing a scandalously short gray dress, had cold gray eyes, clashing greatly against her vibrant gray/blue ones. Her hair, unlike Kagome's rather wavy, silky bluish black locks, was brownish black, thick and undeniably straight. The gray-clad woman was also a bit thinner and taller than Kagome. Also, Kagome's facial features seemed rather softer.  
  
A rather wicked grin passed over the other's lips, making Kagome's eyes widen in apprehension. "Well, this is interesting..." she said, crossing her arms and looking at Kagome through slightly narrowed eyes.  
  
Kagome was confused. "Who are you?"  
  
"And impolite! Gods... what could have ever possessed my Inu to bring you in as a concubine? This is quite distressing..." she said, and Kagome drew slightly back.  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
"Listen here, bitch," she said, spitefully spitting out the last word. "I am the Princess Kikyo, heir to this entire planet. I get everything I want, so stay away from MY Inuyasha!"  
  
Kagome looked at her in confusion, before her words sunk in. Kagome turned red with anger and she angrily glared at the woman. "Well, *Princess*," Kagome said sarcastically. "I never wanted to have anything to do with your Inuyasha anyway. THIS was NOT my choice."  
  
"Just stay away from him!!!" the princess shrilled.  
  
"I won't dream of coming near that murderer!"  
  
"Take that back, you bitch!"  
  
"I'm not a bitch!"  
  
Both glared quietly at each other, and Kikyo hissed. "I should have you killed..."  
  
Kagome really didn't want to say what she was thinking of saying, but just to spite the obviously jealous girl, she promptly repeated what Inuyasha had said to her earlier. Of course, with a few minor adjustments...  
  
"You can't," Kagome hissed back. "I am now Inuyasha-sama's written mistress - his legal possession. You can't have me executed without his command. You can't touch me without his consent."  
  
"You forget, missy," Kikyo replied. "I'm the princess. I am higher than Inuyasha."  
  
Kagome fought back her panic. "True," she replied, sitting on her bed. "But if you try... you would be deliberately disgracing him, ne? I doubt he would ever look at you then."  
  
Kikyo stepped away from her in shock. "Just stay away from him, you aggressive bitch. He's MINE!" she yelled, before stomping out of the bedroom. Kagome grinned in relief and triumph as she heard the princess begin ranting outside her door.  
  
'Poor guards...'  
  
-----/---@  
  
Inuyasha had not been seen in the manor since he left for Kaede's, and everyone had started to worry. Even Sango, who was presently getting Kagome ready, couldn't help glancing out the window every once in a while.  
  
"Sango-chan," Kagome began. "How long have you been working for this manor?"  
  
Sango paused from what she was doing to Kagome's hair. "Not too long... barely two years, actually. And so far, this mansion has given me more security than I could remember."  
  
"You really like it here, ne?"  
  
"Ee... you would, too. You should give Inuyasha-sama a chance, Kagome. He's not too bad, once you get to know him." Then, looking out the window again, "Where is he?!"  
  
"Does he usually go missing when he is about to be awarded?" Kagome asked tensely when she noticed how worried Sango looked.  
  
"Inuyasha-sama has an incurable knack for getting into trouble whenever something important comes up," Sango replied irately. "I'm willing to bet that Houshi-sama will be barging in on us any second now..."  
  
Kagome blinked, twisting her fingers into the folds of her green hakama. "Houshi-sama?"  
  
A knock interrupted them, and before neither could respond, a violet-eyed man with short black hair tied into a ponytail at his nape poked his head into the room. "Sango-sama," he said. "Has Inuyasha-sama come in yet?"  
  
Sango turned to glare at him. "I'm busy, you know. No, he hasn't shown up yet. Now please leave... I am in the middle of preparing Kagome..."  
  
"Ah, Kagome-sama," he cut in, smiling widely as he made his way towards her, holding one of her hands in his. "I believe we have not been properly acquainted."  
  
Kagome looked intently at him, trying to figure out why he looked familiar. "No, I believe not."  
  
"I am Miroku, a soldier and friend of your master," he said. Kagome bristled, knowing the "master" he was referring to was Inuyasha. "I did not realize that you were so lovely..."  
  
Kagome looked away, noticing absently that he still clutched her hand, and that Sango was positively glaring holes into the man's head. "A-arigatou."  
  
"Now, Lady Kagome, if I may ask you..."  
  
"DON"T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT, MONK!"  
  
Both turned to find a fuming Sango practically engulfed in flames in her fury. "She belongs to Inuyasha-sama, for crying out loud! Spare her your monstrosity!"  
  
Miroku abruptly dropped her hand and turned to Sango. "Why Sango-sama... I had no idea that you felt so strongly about..."  
  
"Shut up! I'm trying to..."  
  
Kagome stared when Sango abruptly cut herself off, and recoiled when the woman sent a strong backhand slap to the man before her.  
  
"HENTAI!" she screamed, her face flaming red. "Don't touch me. Now... achi ike yo!!!!"  
  
"Hai, hai... gomen, it was..."  
  
"An accident? Leave, and let me do my job!"  
  
Both girls watched as the monk stumbled out of the room. "Ne, Sango? What was that about?"  
  
Sango smiled at her, traces of her anger still slightly seen. "That hentai gropes my butt whenever he could... now, where was I?"  
  
-----/---@  
  
Sango smiled at her handiwork, fluffing up Kagome's sleeves as a final touch. "Done! Gods, you are so beautiful, Kagome!"  
  
Kagome smiled shyly and looked down at her clasped hands. "Arigatou. May I see how I look?" she asked, and Sango promptly stood and led her to the full-length mirror near her bureau.  
  
Kagome nearly gasped. "I can barely recognize myself! Sango, you are incredible! Arigatou!" She had never been able to dress so extravagantly in her planet, seeing as she wasn't allowed to parties, and seeing herself like this...  
  
Her green, silk v-necked dress hugged her every curve gracefully, with its filmy, transparent sleeves showing off the slim curve of her arms. The wide skirt swept elegantly past her ankles, her feet enclosed in dark green pumps. Sango had swept her hair back in a stylish half ponytail, some free soft locks framing her face. She had on very light make-up, tastefully done to accentuate her eyes.  
  
"Don't let ME take all the glory! I only helped dress you up! You wouldn't look so great if you weren't beautiful to begin with!"  
  
"Oh, arigatou, Sango!" Kagome said, before a sad look overcame her. "I just wish my father were here to see me like this. He had always said that I was lovely, and he would have loved to see me dressed like this..."  
  
Sango remained silent, a small frown crossing her lips. "I... I hope you do not mind, but I cannot bear to speak of your father, Kagome."  
  
Kagome looked up sharply. "Nani?"  
  
"Onegai, can we talk of something else?"  
  
Kagome just then realized how much the people of Soldari seemed to absolutely detest her father. 'Why? My father was a good man. Was Inuyasha telling the truth?' she thought.  
  
"Alright. Now that I am dressed, where do we go?" Kagome asked. "Aren't you coming with me, Sango?"  
  
"Hai, I am..."  
  
"Well? When are you going to dress up? Where are your clothes?"  
  
Sango hesitated. "I have them here. But I have to await further orders. I can't leave you alone. Inuyasha-sama would hate to have anything happen to you."  
  
"Like talking to that bitch of a princess of yours was delightful," Kagome groused, while Sango snickered. She had told her assistant of the unexpected 'visit'. "Dress up, Sango. Now. I can help! Though... I probably won't be as good as you."  
  
Sango laughed. "Alright," she said, taking out a pink gown from a large box. It was much simpler than Kagome's, just a straight cut dress with long, flaring sleeves, but elegant nonetheless. "I don't think I would look as nice as you though."  
  
"Stop that! Now... let's dress you up!"  
  
-----/---@  
  
"What are you doing in my room?"  
  
Sesshoumaru looked irately at his younger brother who sat idly in the center of his bed. "We have only thirty minutes left before the awarding starts. Why aren't you even dressed yet? Everybody has been looking all over for you. Have you even bathed yet? You..."  
  
"She's the key."  
  
Sesshoumaru stiffened. "Nani?"  
  
Inuyasha finally looked at him. "I went to see Kaede about some vibes that I had about Kagome. Kaede says that," he gulped. "That she may be the last link needed to unlock the Shikon no Tama."  
  
The inuyoukai was silent. "Was she sure?"  
  
"No. But I think she's right. And now I have to do all I could to protect the wench."  
  
"You would have done that anyway," Sess muttered.  
  
"What the hell did you say?"  
  
"Nothing. Now go dress up! Your award awaits."  
  
"Yes sir!" Inuyasha saluted, before heading out of his brother's room. The moment he stepped out of the door, he bumped into Miroku.  
  
"INUYASHA! We've been looking all over for you, you git! Where were you?" he yelled. Inuyasha noticed that the monk was already wearing his suit - a black dress suit with an indigo undershirt. Inuyasha was shivering with dread already. He *hated* dressing up!  
  
"None of your business! Now could we just go dress up! We're already late as it is!"  
  
"Your assistants are in the room already," Miroku said as he walked the hanyou to his bedroom. The hanyou's thoughtful expression didn't escape him. "Something's wrong."  
  
Inuyasha paused and looked at him. They stopped just before Inuyasha's door. "Yeah. I need to talk to you. Take all those assistants out... I don't need help getting dressed. And we'll talk."  
  
-----/---@  
  
A/N: Weird chapter, ne? Anyway, I know this chapter didn't really help us get anywhere, but I promise that the next chap, which is already halfway done, would have more sense. But I really needed that conversation between Kaede and Inuyasha to help keep things on track, so this chap wasn't a complete jost, was it?  
  
I also got a complaint about them wearing kimonos and more colonial clothes alternately. I did that on purpose. Firstly, have you noticed that only Inuyasha's family wears kimonos? ^_^  
  
Responses!  
  
GoldenGalaxia: Gomen for the long update! And thanks for the sweets! Now I'm all hyper! ^_^ And yeah, I'd probably be pissed too, but if it were Inuyasha who filed me in... *drools* I guess I won't mind THAT much! Glad you liked it!  
  
fetchboy69: Ehehe... gomen if I forgot to respond to you... Or maybe the review got to me delayed? I dunno... I'm glad you like the story! And, yeah, I'm updating all four right now!  
  
bebe_kagz837: Glad you liked it! ^_^ Thanks!  
  
Litwolf689: I hope your play went well! I'm glad you liked the chap. Here's the update!  
  
silverg2073: Glad you like it! Anyway... I've saved the defending for next time...  
  
Chevere: They didn't want to die... they had to let the spoiled damn bitch in. Ooooh, I hate her. Thanks!  
  
RavenShadow: Glad you liked it! ^_^  
  
Inu-chan49: Here's the chap!  
  
Hanamaru285: Here it is! Glad you like it. ^_^ Arigatou!  
  
Mage: Hehe... I sooo love surprises myself! Thanks for the compliment!  
  
Next chapter - The Awarding (about damn time, ne?). I hope you liked this chap! Thanks to all those wonderful people who reviewed! I LOVE YOU GUYS! Gomen again for the delay, and please read and review! Arigatou! Ja ne!  
  
ScarletRaven1001 


	5. Plights and Plans

oooooooooo

A BOND OF THORNS

5. Plights and Plans

oooooooooo

Inuyasha impatiently paced back and forth in the back of the awarding hall. He was in the King's palace, waiting to be awarded for his slaughter of that bastard, Higurashi, glaring at all the people who came within a yard of him.

He was anxious, to say the least. Of course, the fact that this was gonna be his first major award, and that he had to leave Tetsusaiga in the hands of his less than reliable guards had absolutely nothing to do with that...

He stared out the nearest window, not sparing a half glace at the maid who came asking if he wanted something to drink before the ceremony. He was also disturbed about the conversation he had with Miroku as they were preparing for the awarding.

- Flashback -

"So she's the other half of the key?" Miroku asked quietly, sitting on the edge of Inuyasha's bed as the hanyou hurriedly dressed. Upon his nod, he asked, "Now what? That's not good, is it? I mean, it was trouble enough that we had you, the first half of the key..."

"And now I had to go and bring the other half home," Inuyasha groaned, clutching his pounding head in his hands. "Sesshoumaru took the news too well... I'd bet he's plotting on the best way to kill me without getting blood splattered all over his clothes."

"I doubt he would dishonor your father - he won't do that," Miroku said, patting his friend's back with an amicable grin. "But you do have to watch the girl. And watch OUT for her, too. You never know what the princess is capable of. But you know... this explains your uncharacteristic attraction to her..."

"God dammit, Miroku! I'm not attracted to her!" Inuyasha yelled, pulling on the over coat that Miroku had lain out for him.

"Of course, she is incredibly attractive," Miroku continued, oblivious to his friend's growing rage. "And that ass... ooh, that ass! I could never forget that ass!"

"Shut the fuck up!" the hanyou yelled, giving in to the unbelievable urge to punch the monk. "We are not here to talk about Kagome's delectable ass!"

"Ah, so you admit that she has a delectable ass!" Miroku said, grinning in triumph while rubbing his sore jaw. "I knew it!"

"Shut up," Inuyasha said with less heat than before, his face growing redder every second. "Back to the subject. What will I do with her? The Shikon no Tama bears an ancient power that is not to be unleashed. I'm sure at least Naraku has sensed her presence..."

Miroku looked up sharply at the mention of that name, unconsciously clenching his right hand. "If that bastard has sensed her, it would be trouble. Let us hope he hasn't. Yet. Not until we've figured out what to do with the both of you."

- End Flashback -

"Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!" Inuyasha muttered, clenching his fists in agitation. "I don't like crowds..." he whispered to himself angrily, imagining the hundreds of people who would be there to see him awarded, to see him together with his first ever concubine.

'Here I go again,' he thought as his mind drifted back to Kagome. He would never admit it, but he had felt a twinge of uncharacteristic attraction towards her since he first set his eyes upon her.

Yes, since the first time, when she stood before him, slightly burnt and bloody, wearing nothing but a thin nightdress and the fiercest, most enraged and agonized scowl on her face. Her glorious gray/blue eyes glaring holes into his.

Since the first time he smelled her, though her lovely scent had been slightly altered by the strong scent of death and smoke in the crumbling Calderian palace. Her scent...

Just the mere thought of her scent drove his senses haywire. She smelled of the fresh mist on the first day of spring... she smelled of jasmine and cherry blossoms on a clear day... she smelled beautiful... nearly as beautiful as how she looked... maybe even more...

And damn, she looked good... he could see how shapely she was even through the loose garments that she had worn. If his eyes were not deceiving him, she had perfectly proportionate breasts and a killer ass, he'd agree with Miroku on that. And now, he just couldn't help but wonder just how she would look in that dress that he got her...

"Inuyasha."

The hanyou nearly jumped as he heard his name, and he sharply turned to find Sesshoumaru standing near the doorway to the hall. "What?"

"I just saw your wench. She's wearing your mother's dress," Sesshoumaru said simply.

"Duh. I know. I took it out of its hamper, you know."

"Why?"

"Coz she ain't got nothing to wear. We don't have enough time to have new ones sewn for her, and I figured she was the same size as okaasan. Sango just had to pin loose parts up. Besides, do you want me to take her to the awarding dressed in our house garbs?" Inuyasha snapped back, cringing at the thought of having Kagome out before all those people in a flimsy garment.

"I'm sure Miroku would have loved that. Anyway, I commend you on your choice of clothing," Sesshoumaru replied, much to Inuyasha's confusion.

"What do you mean?"

"You'll get it once you see her," the man replied with an inaudible chuckle.

"Huh?"

"Just get ready, the awarding shall start in a few minutes."

oooooooooo

"Sango!"

Sango looked over her shoulder to find Miroku running frantically towards her. She pulled slightly at Kagome's hand to indicate that they stop walking to regard the frantic monk.

"Nani, Houshi-sama? I am bringing Kagome-chan to the awarding, if that's what's worrying you," she said, watching in puzzlement as Miroku suddenly stopped dead in his tracks.

Miroku was in awe. 'Sango... so beautiful...' he thought dazedly, letting his eyes feast on the figure before him. Her gown was simple but beautiful, something absolutely befitting of a woman like Sango. Her hair was simply combed back, letting a few loose strands frame her lovely face.

He snapped back to reality when Sango yelled his name in his face. "Oh, gomen Sango-sama! It's just... your dress... you look stunning, Lady Sango."

Sango flared red and tried to hide her face from his view in vain. Kagome almost giggled at her new friend's obvious unease.

"Ano... Arigatou, Houshi-sama. Now, what was it you wanted?" Sango asked, her face still slightly red. She watched as Miroku took a short glimpse of Kagome, smiled shortly at the princess, then looked straight back at her. That just made her blush even more. She knew Kagome was beautiful, yet it almost seemed like... like the monk only had eyes for her. But it was too much to ask, right?

Wrong. Miroku regarded the princess shortly, and gave her a polite smile, noticing that she looked quite lovely now that she was dressed up, but Sango... now SHE was something else!

"Inuyasha sent me to look for you. He is already in the awarding hall, and decorum calls for his concubine to be there. He asked me to escort the both of you," Miroku said shortly, before moving towards Sango and whispering. "Besides, I need to talk to you... it is urgent."

Kagome blinked as Miroku whispered something that she couldn't pick up to Sango. Sango blushed softly, and Kagome concluded that it must have been another compliment.

Sango, on the other hand, was blushing from the contact between them. Why did he need to get so close, anyway? Did he really need to get THAT close when whispering?! Duh... he was whispering... Sango nodded dumbly. "Lead the way, Houshi-sama."

Miroku began walking off at a fast pace, causing Kagome to stumble slightly in his wake. She wasn't used to wearing such strange shoes! They were a tad too high, and she was already trying hard to keep her balance as it was! They walked straight through the front doors, and Kagome blushed slightly when she noticed the guards' gazes lingering on her. She looked down at her feet shyly, not noticing the carriage that awaited them.

"Well, ladies first, Kagome-sama, Sango-sama," she heard Miroku say, making her look up and stare in awe at the waiting wagon. It was slightly round and of pure white, its single open door edged with gold trimmings. It had ebony wheels, and was drawn by a set of four white horses.

Kagome gulped slightly before ducking inside the vehicle. Inside it were two plush white seats that could each seat about three people, both facing each other. Kagome sat down on one of them, and she was shortly followed by Sango. Miroku followed, sitting on the chair opposite them.

"Well, I hope you are ready, Kagome-sama. A lot of people will be watching you with Inuyasha..." Miroku began, and Kagome bristled at the sound of the name.

"I am well aware of that, Miroku-sama," Kagome answered curtly, thoughts of Inuyasha ruining the good mood that Sango had helped her with.

Miroku sensed the tense atmosphere at once. 'She really hates him... but it was Inuyasha's job to get rid of her father. He did us all a favor with that. And he DID spare her...'

Sango also noticed this, and kept silent. The short ride to the palace was also done in relative silence.

Kagome stared out the window as they rode to the palace. 'Such a short distance. Why would we need a carriage?' she thought musingly, before an irritated thought made its way to her mind once again. 'Probably a publicity stunt... he wants to show everybody that he is "taking care" of his "mistress",' she thought in disgust. 'Gods, I hate him.'

He was a cold-blooded murderer. He killed her father, destroyed her land, and now had the nerve to take her away and make her HIS concubine! He was arrogant, ill-tempered, evil... and absolutely handsome.

'Eh?! Where had THAT come from?!' Kagome thought angrily. She hated him! But... he really was good-looking. She had been playing blind about it, but to be honest with herself, the guy was not an eyesore. He had the most amazing golden eyes... She hated him, but she couldn't begin to deny the truth. The bastard was an attractive man. That was probably where all his arrogance came from. And she had to admit, if he had not been her father's killer, she would have looked twice at him.

She was surprised that they had arrived at the palace during the time it took her to think about her hatred for her "master". Miroku led the way out of the carriage, before extending his hand to Sango and helping her out, then doing the same for Kagome.

Kagome stepped off carefully, keeping her eyes on her feet. She gasped aloud as she looked up and regarded the palace. Its pure white walls were pure and pristine, its tall turrets twined with rose garlands. Wreaths of flowers lined the red carpet that led the guests inside the hall. And the people around her! She had never seen so many people in her entire life! But she could have sworn that there weren't many people around as she came out of the dungeons that morning...

It was rather late in the afternoon now, and the lights from inside the palace shone out at her as they walked towards the palace doorway. She barely noticed the people who stared and whispered about her as she walked past them. She had very good hearing, and she discreetly listened to the Soldarians' words.

"Is that Higurashi's daughter?"

"Why is she here? She's that bastard's child, isn't she?"

She cringed at the words that she overheard. Just why did they hate her father so? Surely, he wasn't as evil as they all make them out to be? He was a wonderful man, loved by all of Calderia. Perhaps they were all misinformed?

"I heard that the Lord Inuyasha has taken a liking to her."

"Yeah. Maybe that's why he had succeeded in killing Higurashi."

"Maybe he killed him so he could take her with him!"

"And she is coming to see Lord Inuyasha as he is being awarded for killing her father!"

She balked at that. As if she'd go with her father's murderer! But what she heard next nearly made her spin around and hit whoever had said it.

"I heard that she had spread her legs for Lord Inuyasha."

"Ah, so that's why they haven't executed her yet."

"What a slut."

"A beautiful slut, though. Is she really a Higurashi?"

"If I were Lord Inuyasha, I wouldn't mind bedding her, even if she IS Higurashi's kid!"

Tears of anger formed around the edges of her eyes. How could they say that? How could they possibly think that she would lay on Inuyasha's bed just so he would spare her? She absolutely loathed that man! She was a princess, for God's sake! She would never grovel before him to be spared. She would much sooner die than lie with him!

She would NEVER give herself to him.

"Kagome?" Sango's voice broke through her musings. "Daijobu?"

She smiled slightly at her and nodded. Sango was not fooled, though. Kagome was not the only one who overheard the people's conversations. Miroku also looked rather steamed. Apparently, he had overheard them, as well.

Kagome kept smiling as she entered the palace. The place truly was beautiful. Its walls were, like the outside, of pure white, but with large mirrors lining them at about every three meters. Blaring chandeliers hung low from the high ceiling, and the flowers at the entrance did not cease as they went into the grand hall. Deep magenta roses lined the halls, and between the pillars hung deep velvet drapes. The palace was all lights and sweet scents.

"Sango!" a small voice called from somewhere behind them, and all turned to find an anxious servant, her hair pulled back in a bun and wearing a dark blue servant uniform, running towards them with a rather frantic expression. "Sango-san, Inuyasha-sama has been asking for you. He says he wants you to bring his concubine to him."

Kagome's smile instantly vanished.

"Oh, well, Koharu-chan. You're in luck! Here she is now," Sango said, turning towards the frowning Kagome with a smile. "Kagome, this is Koharu. She'll be taking you to Inuyasha-sama now."

"Kagome-sama, Inuyasha-sama awaits you in the backroom," Koharu said and bowed low before Kagome, startling her. Just how highly (or lowly) do they regard her here? One minute she was being thought of as a slut, and now she was being treated like a princess again!

Kagome softly asked the servant girl to rise. "Where is he?" she asked Koharu, who immediately picked up her skirts and asked her to come with her. 'As if I have a choice,' Kagome thought grimly.

"Kagome-sama!" Miroku called as she went to walk with Koharu.

"Nani, Miroku-sama?"

Miroku was silent for a while, and it made Kagome uneasy. "Kagome-sama, please be careful. Stick with Inuyasha, don't leave his side, and please... just... just stay with him tonight, ne?"

Kagome was confused. "I don't have a choice, Miroku-sama. I won't leave his side today, don't worry."

oooooooooo

"Where the fuck is that wench?" Inuyasha rallied as he sat before the king in one of the king's smaller offices. He could see the sun setting outside from one of the windows of the room. He would be awarded at sundown.

"Calm down, Inuyasha! It's not as if she will disappear if you are not right beside her!" King Onigumo said amicably, smiling broadly at Inuyasha. Then he turned serious. "And Inuyasha, I once again congratulate you for getting rid of Higurashi. Since the decree came out... I shall publicly congratulate you later."

"Thanks. I... It was my duty. And... Your highness," Inuyasha said. "Listen, I... about Kagome..."

"Ah, Kagome is Higurashi's daughter's name, ne? I just keep forgetting!" the king said. "You know, your application for her as your concubine came as a bit of a surprise. I didn't realize that those were your reasons for bringing her here..."

"No, those weren't my initial reasons, Onigumo-sama. I just want her to be under my care right now. She is, after all, the last of her race."

"That is what is confusing me, Inuyasha!" Onigumo exclaimed. "Why do you not want a race of evil people to be wiped out? Kagome is the spawn of the devil himself! How do you know she is not as wicked as her father? Why do you choose her over Kikyo?"

Inuyasha was startled by the King's outburst. "Your highness..."

"Kikyo has been in love for you for so long, Inuyasha. And I am getting old. I want to see her loved and provided for before I am gone. And you are the only one she wants," Onigumo said.

"Your highness, Higurashi is an asshole, but the people aren't exactly all like him! And..." Inuyasha paused. "King Onigumo, you know that I just don't feel that way about her. Gomen, really, I'm sorry, but... I don't love Kikyo."

"Can't you give her a chance?"

"Kikyo isn't for me. And I'm not for her," Inuyasha said.

"Well, then, just tell me one thing," the king said in resignation. "What do you see in Kagome that Kikyo does not have? Why take her as a concubine?"

Inuyasha didn't know what to say to that. He couldn't tell the king that she was the other half of the key - that would cause even bigger problems. And besides, the King didn't really know how valuable the Shikon no Tama was. He wouldn't care. Only the mystics and sorcerers of the land knew about it... he doubted that Kikyo had even heard about the Shikon no Tama, or Naraku.

He opened and closed his mouth a few times, but the wholly unexpected knock on the door was very much appreciated.

"Come in," Onigumo called, and in came a timid Koharu.

"You Royal Highness, I have brought Kagome-sama here as was your and Inuyasha-sama's request. Shall I let her in?" Koharu asked bowing low before them.

Onigumo was just about to say yes, but Inuyasha cut him off. "No, take her to the third sunroom. I wish to speak with her alone," he said, shooting the king a slightly annoyed look.

Koharu bowed before them then left the room to take Kagome to the said room. Onigumo turned to Inuyasha with a puzzled look. "Why did you do that?"

He was silent for a while, trying to gather his now scattered thoughts as how Kagome might look entered his mind. He was steamed about the King bringing Kikyo up into their discussion, even knowing how much he disliked the princess. "Gomen, King Onigumo, but Kagome and I have some things to settle. You do realize that she is here almost completely against her will?" he stated, before bowing slightly and leaving the King to his thoughts.

oooooooooo

Inuyasha stomped, irritated, through the halls of the palace. He was annoyed at the King for even suggesting something about Kikyo - he knew that Inuyasha didn't like her! There was a time that Inuyasha had been completely infatuated by the princess, but that was then. And what was that about him choosing Kagome over her? Kagome was an obligation to him now. He had to watch over her like a hawk now that he knew about her being the key. And she was the last of her kind... Those were his reasons. Right?

Now, where was he? Oh yeah... he was now standing a few doors away from the room he had instructed Koharu to take her to. His mind was suddenly assaulted with mental pictures of Kagome's face as she sat on the edge of her bed that morning, wearing a green hakama and glaring at him, while he cleaned up her wounds. He had just gathered back his sense of direction when he heard a soft voice calling his name from the corridor behind him. A soft female voice, belonging to one person he wouldn't want to see at a time like this... scratch that, he didn't enjoy seeing her at any time.

He turned to her abruptly, about to give her his usual 'What the hell do you want, Lady

Kikyo?', but the sight of her had made his breath catch in his throat. Shock overwhelmed him as he stared unwaveringly at her, his eyes wide. He had just realized something...

Kikyo looked astoundingly like Kagome. He had to wonder how in the hells he had managed to overlook it before. He had only noticed because as he turned to her, his mind was on Kagome, and it was as if he had suddenly been confronted with her - only it wasn't Kagome at all.

Then he realized - the two looked so similar, yet their eyes were so different... and he knew that the thing that had captivated him about Kagome was her eyes. And looking more closely, he realized that they may have looked similar, but also so different at the same time. It hardly made sense... but that was how he saw it.

Looking more closely at the princess, he was struck by how good she actually looked in her dress. Kikyo was wearing a long sleeved, elegant deep maroon dress, making her pale complexion look perfect and healthy. The tight ankle-length skirt that flared around her feet accented the curve of her hips. Her straight hair hung like a curtain of silk down her back. Scarlet eye shadow lined her eyes, which were staring at him with something akin to hunger.

He could never deny the fact that she looked better than the average woman. But her hooded eyes had always kept him at bay. It was as if... as if her eyes held no emotion. When she smiled, her eyes remained cold. He once again found himself comparing her to Kagome as he stared at her eyes. Kagome's beautiful expressive eyes showed you her heart, that he knew. They showed him how much she hated him, didn't they?

"Inuyasha... wonderful to see you. Congratulations on getting rid of Higurashi. You have avenged the people that he had mercilessly killed," Kikyo said with a seductive smile. "I see you are ready for your awarding," she added as she eyed him longingly.

He was dressed regally, befitting of a noble as himself. Victory gleamed in her eyes when she noticed that he was staring at her, almost as if he were in shock. She had dressed up for his awarding... she had to show him that she was so much better than that childish-looking whore that he had brought home from the wars. But then she noticed something... as he stared at her, it was as if his mind was far off - she could see it in his golden eyes. He was thinking of something else as he looked at her, looking for all the world like he was stunned by her beauty.

Or rather, someONE else.

'He's thinking of that bitch!' she thought heatedly as she remembered how much she and the other woman had looked alike. 'He's probably comparing me to her as we stand here!'

Kikyo's eyes narrowed in suspicious malice, snapping Inuyasha out of his stupor. Inuyasha suddenly remembered that the princess had spoken to him. "Uh..." he stammered, not knowing what to say since he didn't even listen to Kikyo as she spoke to him. He was too lost in his thoughts to care. "Um... yeah," he said morosely, absently noticing that the anger on Kikyo's face didn't even begin to reach her eyes.

"I'd be going ahead now, okay Princess? I have to talk to Kagome. Ja," he said in a no-nonsense way as he turned from her to head back the way he had been going.

oooooooooo

Angered tears threatened to fall down Kikyo's cheeks as he carelessly turned away from her, intent on finding his concubine. He didn't even seem to notice her! She had worn her best dress, shrieked all the slaves into making her as beautiful as she could possibly be, and now here he was, without a word to her except a detached 'yeah'.

Kikyo stared after him sadly, fuming at his insensitivity. "What do I have to do to get you to notice me, Inuyasha?" she softly asked his departing figure as he rounded the corner towards the third sunroom. "Are you coming to get her now, Inuyasha? Are you going to bring her to the noble hall with you now?"

The tears started to fall down the heartbroken maiden's cheeks, and was just about to turn when she heard a voice, seemingly from inside her head, mocking her.

"Are you just going to stand by and watch that wretched princess take him from you, Lady Kikyo? Kukuku... that is so unlike a princess. Shouldn't you stand up for what is yours?"

Kikyo turned abruptly, wildly looking around for the source of the voice. "Who are you? Show yourself! As the princess of this land, I order you to show yourself!" she said bravely, barely keeping the wavering out of her voice.

"No need to be forceful, my dear princess. Turn around and you shall see me."

Kikyo turned, and as she did so, a form drifted away from the shadows on the walls, coming to stand before her. The figure was wearing a strange white cloak, its hood hiding his face in shadows. He slowly looked up, startling the princess when his glowing red eyes stared into her dark gray orbs.

"Who are you?" Kikyo repeated, stepping away from the man. "What do you want from me?"

"Want?" the man said. "I want nothing but to help you, my dear lady. I can see how much the hanyou hurts you..."

"Don't call him that!" Kikyo snapped. "I don't need your help."

"Oh, but you do. I have what you want in the palm of my hand," he said softly.

"You have nothing that I may possibly want, whoever you are. Leave my palace before I have the guards arrest you," she said. She turned and began to walk away from him, but what the cloaked man said next made her stop dead in her tracks.

"I can make Inuyasha love you, Kikyo-hime."

Kikyo slowly turned towards him, her eyes wide and full of surprise. "Nani?"

The man knew when he had someone cornered, and he knew he had gotten to the princess. 'How pathetic, falling so in love with a hanyou that she would do anything to be loved back.'

"The name's Naraku, my lady," he said, moving towards her and kissing her right hand. "I am at your service."

"Can you... can you really... make Inuyasha love me?" Kikyo said, a hint of hope softening her voice.

"Yes, Kikyo-sama. I only wish for one thing in exchange for your services. One that you possibly would want as well," Naraku said, his garnet eyes glinting in victory. If she started having doubts, he knew exactly what he should do to make her say yes.

Kikyo hardly noticed the way his smile turned almost diabolical as he saw her giving in. 'Inuyasha,' she thought longingly. 'Will I really have his heart? Can I trust this man?'

At that thought, Kikyo suddenly saw an image of the man she loved. He was standing right outside the palace doors, a bouquet of flowers in his hands, smiling at her with his usual arrogant smirk, his expressive amber eyes full of love. She was running towards him, her arms outstretched, and as she reached him, he opened his arms, catching her and holding on tight. He tilted her back, lowering his lips to hers...

"Well, Kikyo-sama?" a voice interrupted her daydream, bringing the face of Naraku into her view. She wanted what she had just dreamed of so bad...

Naraku smirked inwardly as the princess seemed to come out of a trance. As soon as he sensed the doubt in her, he immediately planted a tempting mental image in her head. He had her, he was sure.

Kikyo stared at him. He was the key to her having Inuyasha. "Naraku..."

"Hai, Kikyo-sama?"

Kikyo took a deep breath, images of Inuyasha running through her mind.

"What do you wish for me to do?"

oooooooooo

Kagome stood impatiently in the center of the room. Koharu had just left her there, and now she was waiting for her "master" to arrive. She laughed scornfully as she saw her reflection in one of the mirrors of the sunroom. She was lovely... and she was stuck with a bastard.

A small knock came from the door, and before she could ask whoever it was to come in, Inuyasha slipped inside the room, his face turned away from her, brushing lint from his shirt. For a short moment, she was stunned - he looked incredible! He was wearing a black dress suit and a red undershirt. His silver hair still had that sleek-though-uncombed appearance, and he looked like a real prince now that he was clean. All the other times she had seen him, he was either wearing trash or had soot and blood all over his face. If she thought he was handsome then... wow... what was she thinking now?

Why did she feel so attracted to him, when he was her father's killer?

Inuyasha slowly lifted his head to acknowledge Kagome, and upon setting his eyes on her, his jaw all but dropped. She was breathtakingly beautiful, and her clean, intoxicating scent invaded his senses like the most potent wine. He was right about the dress - it suit her well. And he was right about her figure as well... what a body! The sleek green dress accentuated her every curve, and the light make-up that she had on only served to enhance and bring out her face's delicate features.

He snapped out of it when he noticed her glaring at him. "Ahem... Kagome, its time for the awarding."

"I can see that. Where's your sword, master?"

"Very funny, wench. Now I want you to act civilized out there. Is that clear?"

"Yes, bastard."

"No trying to kill people, and I want you at my side at all times, you hear me?"

"Yes, murderer."

"Stop that!"

Inuyasha sighed. She may have looked pretty, but she was still as mad at him as ever. He slowly approached her and began to pull her out of the room by her arm. Kagome gave a squeak of protest, and he used her unguarded state to his advantage. He shoved his face mere inches away from her own and said, "If you try anything funny, guards are all around. If you do anything barbaric to me, they won't hesitate to gun you down right then and there. So you behave yourself, got that, wench?"

Kagome nodded dumbly, before following him out of the room. Inuyasha took hold of

Kagome's arm, hooking his arm around hers. Kagome began to protest, but Inuyasha cut her off with a glare.

"Stop that wench. The awarding is about to start," he said, dragging her off to wait behind the curtains concealing them from the grand ballroom.

oooooooooo

The grand ballroom was packed with people, all of whom were laughing and getting reacquainted with old friends who had been invited to the awarding of the young duke Inuyasha. The lights from the myriad chandeliers hanging from the ceiling were bright and cheerful, the bouquets of flowers fresh and fragrant, all walls and furniture polished to perfection, and Sango was getting dizzy. And Miroku, with his less than exciting news, was not helping.

"Houshi-sama, I don't understand. How could Kagome, of all people, be the missing half? She's not even from this planet!" Sango whined softly.

"I don't know, Sango-sama. But the magic books never said that the key had to be from this planet," Miroku said thoughtfully.

"But you said that Inuyasha said that Kaede said that she wasn't sure!" Sango all but screamed.

"Yes, but Inuyasha also said that he had a gut feeling that Kagome-sama is the other half. And if anyone knows for sure, it would be Inuyasha. After all, he is the other half of the key."

"The books don't even say how the key could unlock the Shikon no Tama, Houshi."

"The books state," Miroku began. "That the two halves of the key would subconsciously know how to do it. We have to prevent Kagome-sama from using her powers, especially if Inuyasha is around. And to do that, we have to keep all threats away from her, so her powers would not awaken."

"Inuyasha already has Tetsusaiga. It acts as a barrier for him, ne Houshi- sama?" Sango asked.

"From what I know," Miroku said. "Tetsusaiga is to act as a seal so his demon blood and his powers won't come out. Duke Inutaisho had it forged when he learned from Kaede of Inuyasha being one half of the key. So all we really have to worry about is Kagome."

Sango sighed. "I guess we should look after her. We have to at least try to prevent those two from somehow unlocking the Shikon no Tama."

Miroku nodded, and saw out of the corner of his eye that King Onigumo was slowly rising from his seat, signaling for the orchestra players to stop their music as he began to speak. "Sango-sama, the awarding is about to start."

oooooooooo

"You're nervous, aren't you?" Kagome asked a pale Inuyasha, as he muttered curses under his breath and fidgeted restlessly beside her.

Inuyasha gave a small laugh, surprising Kagome - and himself. He laughed! He actually laughed! Was he that nervous? "Am I that obvious?" he asked the smirking female who stood beside him with her arms rigidly hooked through his.

"Yes you are. You're just gonna get awarded, what's the problem?" she asked, rolling her eyes.

Inuyasha looked away from her, barely hearing the more than flattering words that the king was saying about him. All this for killing a guy? "That's just it. And have you seen how many people there were out there?"

Kagome began to laugh, once again surprising both of them. "You're afraid of people? You go to war and risk your neck, and now you tell me you're afraid of people?"

"I'm not afraid of people!" Inuyasha snapped. "I just don't like crowds, especially if they're all looking at me. Besides, I'm about to be awarded, with you, my first concubine! People expect me to act properly around you, and I don't even know what I'm supposed to do!!!"

'Aha,' Kagome thought. This was her chance. She had vowed to break him as revenge, and since she obviously can't kill him... she would gain his trust... and betray him so badly...

She would break him. She would hurt him. And she would laugh about it once it was all over.

"Listen, Inuyasha," Kagome began softly, and Inuyasha looked at her in surprise at her soft tone. She hooked her arm more tightly around his, looking at him with a grim expression. "I hate you. I really do. But for saving me," she inwardly gagged. "I'll help you out with this. Just be your natural, arrogant self, and I'll do the rest. Alright?"

Inuyasha nodded dumbly as he heard the king's last few words of praise.

"...and we will be awarding him tonight. Sons and daughters of Soldari, please give a round of applause for our hero, young Duke Inuyasha!"

He blinked rapidly as the curtains shielding him and Kagome parted, presenting them to the hundreds of people there, all of whom were clapping and cheering their 'hero'. He was dazed, and he belatedly noticed Kagome nudging him hard.

He turned to her, and nearly fainted in shock. She was smiling at him, for the very first time, pulling on his arm, signaling him to go towards the King.

Oh yeah... she was faking that. But Gods, she had a beautiful smile...

Inuyasha steeled himself and gave a small smirk, waving at the people who were clapping with his arm not on Kagome. She was smiling vibrantly at the crowd, and though it was against her will, it seemed to do it for the curious people. She hated him, but she was doing this for him. He couldn't help but be flattered.

He approached the king, bowing low before him, and Kagome gave a small curtsy beside him. Even the King looked surprised at how well Kagome was behaving. Inuyasha stood straight upon the King's request. His knees were shaking, hopefully not visibly, as he stood there, nervous at knowing that the entire nobility of Soldari was staring at him right at that moment.

"Lord Inuyasha of the Taiyoukai clan, as King of Soldari, I congratulate you upon the slaughter of the tyrant Lord Higurashi," the king said, and Inuyasha felt Kagome tremble slightly, her arm tightening around his. "I grant you command upon the first fleet of Calderia, which you had for years been part of. And from this day, you will be Lieutenant Colonel Inuyasha Taiyoukai!"

Loud applause greeted Inuyasha right then, and he nearly fainted. 'Lieutenant Colonel? Like only one rank below Sesshoumaru?' he thought, seeing the King pin a large golden emblem on his chest. The royal crest, signifying the king's eternal gratitude.

Everybody looked happy, and Inuyasha smirked slowly, bowed to the King, and turned to regard his fellowmen. He waved again, before looking at Kagome, who was smiling tightly, holding onto his arm.

He left the podium and began to walk towards the refreshment tables, before a servant approached him and told him that he had a table reserved for himself and his concubine.

He led Kagome over to the table, where an assortment of different food had been set before him. People came to him endlessly as he took his seat with Kagome, shaking his hand and thanking him for killing Higurashi. Some of them stopped a while to look at Kagome, some even commending him on his choice of concubine.

Kagome seethed at every word of thanks she heard directed towards Inuyasha. They were congratulating him for "ridding the world of the devil himself", and she hated it. Some of the men gave her strange looks, before turning to Inuyasha and saying that she was much too pretty to be "Higurashi's child".

They called her so many different things, but never once did she hear any of them speak her name. Did nobody on this Gods be damned planet know her name? Heck, not even Inuyasha had called her by her name yet!

Finally, the people seemed to have run out, and the pair ate in peace. The food was wonderful, but each bite tasted like glue to Kagome. It was her birthday... but here she was, "rejoicing" her father's death.

"It's my birthday," she whispered scornfully, but Inuyasha heard her. He gave no indication that he did, though.

Inuyasha noticed that Princess Kikyo was not in the ballroom. Maybe he just missed her, and she was there, "lurking in the shadows" as Miroku puts it? He shrugged before continuing to eat his meal.

A sudden explosion from the center of the room grabbed his attention away from the food, and he sat up, turning his shocked eyes to the ballroom. Kagome abruptly stood as well, her eyes locked upon the pandemonium in the middle of the hall.

People ran in all directions away from the explosion, screaming their fright and tripping over their skirts. A burst of smoke came from the depths of the explosion, and when the smoke cleared, a figure in a white cloak appeared. The man was holding onto a limp female figure, whom Inuyasha recognized at once.

"Kikyo!" he shouted. Kagome covered her mouth with her hand to stifle a gasp of shock as she too, recognized the woman. The cloaked man was holding her unconscious form, and Kagome shivered when the man looked up and stared at her and Inuyasha. His eyes...

His eyes were scarlet.

"Naraku! Teme... what are you doing here?" Inuyasha shouted.

Kagome's eye's widened. 'Did he just say... Naraku?'

"I've come to congratulate you, Inuyasha! You have managed to kill the King of Calderia! I am so proud of you!" Naraku said mockingly, his gaze drifting to Kagome. "And now you have a concubine?! How lucky you are, Inuyasha! Tell you what. I'll give the princess back to her father, if you agree to join me and find the jewel!"

Inuyasha seethed, and the panicked king began calling for guards, ordering them to arrest the man who stood before him, holding his unconscious daughter. The guards charged at Naraku, but the dark-haired youkai simply raised the hand not holding onto the princess, and shot a strange ray of light towards the oncoming guards.

Strangled yells of pain were heard from the guards, as the ray from Naraku's hand scorched them, engulfing them in red-hot flames. Inuyasha had to look away, and Kagome closed her eyes, holding her hands over her ears. Inuyasha made a grab for the frightened princess, holding her shivering form close to his body as tears of horror slowly dripped from her closed eyes.

Naraku turned back to Inuyasha. "I know your secret, hanyou. And I know about the girl. You WILL give me what I want if you know what's best for you. I'll be right behind you, watching. And I'm going to regain what is mine by right!"

With those words, Naraku threw Kikyo a good ten feet away from him, making the princess land in a listless heap on the ground.

"Kikyo!" Inuyasha yelled, and almost ran to her, but he would not leave Kagome- she needed his protection now that Naraku knew about her. He couldn't leave her. Besides, the King was already running towards Kikyo anyway.

Naraku gave a loud, haunting laugh, before flames exploded around his form. When the flames disappeared, so had the cloaked figure.

Kagome looked up when the room suddenly turned deathly quiet. Naraku was gone... leaving behind a patch of burnt floor, dead guards, and an injured Soldarian princess. She pushed away from Inuyasha, placing her hands on his chest as she surveyed the horrified people.

"You ok?" Inuyasha asked softly , looking down at the woman in his arms.

"Ee. I think so..." she looked back at him. "That man... who was he?"

"Naraku. A total bastard and regal pain in the ass. He's after the Shikon no Tama."

"The what?"

"I'll explain later. But we have to get out of here," he said, holding her arms lightly as he spoke to her, silently ordering her to look into his eyes.

Kagome nodded slowly, before realizing something...

She was still in Inuyasha's embrace. Their faces were a scant few inches apart as they spoke softly to each other, and Kagome blushed as she imagined the compromising scene they must have made to those who bothered to look.

Both suddenly pushed away from each other, turning away from the other in an effort to regain their composure. Kagome's heart was beating fast, and Inuyasha was trying to keep the blush off his face.

'Shit,' he thought. He had barely realized that he and Kagome were speaking so closely, and that she had still been in his arms. He could have kissed her if he had leaned down a tiny bit more...

Now, why was he thinking that?! He turned to her, the blush still on his cheeks, and spoke the first thing that came to mind.

"So... you ready to go home?"

oooooooooo

"So, you gonna tell me or what?" Kagome asked Inuyasha as they stepped inside the Inuyoukai manor. After the attack, nobody had not been shaken enough to continue the festivities, and everybody got up and went home. Miroku and Sango decided to stay and help the King and the other guards with whatever had to be done, but Inuyasha had immediately dragged Kagome away and pushed her inside the carriage.

Inuyasha remained silent as he walked beside Kagome, up the stairs leading to her bedroom. "It's a long story. I'll tell you, but not today. I need to... to think."

"You said you would tell me," Kagome protested as they reached her door, where two guards were stationed like they had been before they left for the awarding.

"I said I'd tell you later. I never said I'd tell you once we got back home," he stated gruffly, opening Kagome's door with his ID card. "Right now, you need to rest. It's been a long day, and don't forget that you still have injuries from yesterday's attack."

Kagome stiffened. Hell, she remembered. How could she forget the day she lost her father?

Inuyasha led her inside her room, motioning for her to sit on her bed. Once she was seated, Inuyasha began to speak again. "I'll tell you what you want to know about Naraku tomorrow. But for now you have to rest. I had the servants fill your closets while we were out, so you have some new things in there. If you want to bathe, there are soaps here, too, but I'd advice against that. You'll get sick. Just go to sleep, ok?"

Kagome glared at him as he spoke. "I don't have to follow your orders."

"But you should. Now go to sleep. You can do whatever you want once you wake up. But for now, you need your sleep," Inuyasha said, heading for the door. "Goodnight. If you need anything, just press that button," Inuyasha motioned to a button by the side of her headboard. "Alright? Go to sleep."

With that, Inuyasha left Kagome to her thoughts.

oooooooooo

'Naraku...' she thought for the umpteenth time that night. 'That name... that's the name of the phantom in my dreams... the one who... who killed me...'

She was in the shower, rinsing off the creams that Sango had used on her hair to keep it in place for that evening. She scrubbed furiously at her body, washing away all the dirt of the day. Inuyasha had been right about the soaps. He had the servants place soaps in her closet - about a dozen varieties of them.

'Is he trying to get on my good side? Coz he won't be succeeding anytime soon,' she thought angrily. 'I still detest his very essence.'

She stepped out of the shower, and dried herself up, wrapping a towel around her form before leaving the bathroom. She went for the dresser where she had found her sets of underwear. She was just about to open the top drawer when she noticed something resting on top of her bureau.

It was a small golden comb, just large enough to fit in her palm, encrusted with a set of small gems - two small emeralds, and right between them was a slightly larger smoky blue sapphire. Underneath it was a note, and Kagome picked both items up with astonishment. She read the note to herself under her breath, her surprise growing with every word.

Oi wench,

I saw this in the house treasury, and it reminded me of you. You had better use this thing! And yeah...

Happy birthday.

Kagome stared at the note in her hands, then shifted her gaze back to the little treasure in her other hand. It was lovely, and as she looked at the sapphire, she unconsciously found herself shifting her gaze to the mirror on her dresser. The sapphire... was the same color as her eyes.

And the green was the exact color of the dress she had worn earlier.

She regarded the dress, which she had lain on her bed, before glancing back at the note. Who could have known it was her birthday? And who could have sneaked up into her room just to... could it have been...

'Iie... that's impossible,' she thought. But her room was highly guarded, and the only one who could get in was... 'Absolutely impossible!' she thought, and she noticed, much to her irritation, that her heart had skipped a beat at the thoughts in her head.

She turned the card, and at the backside of the card was a small printed name.

Inuyasha

oooooooooo

A/N: Revision dated March 22, 2009.


	6. News Flash

A/N: Ehehehe... It's been ages, ne? GOMEN! But anyway, here's the next chap. Sorry for the delay. Enjoy!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own it. Alright?!  
  
-----/---@  
  
A BOND OF THORNS  
  
News Flash  
  
-----/---@  
  
Miroku rubbed at the sore red handprint mark on his cheek, reminiscent of the slap Sango had given him early that morning. 'Fiery, that woman is... VERY fiery.'  
  
He turned to the youkai before him as he dropped his hand, wondering why he had been called by the commander (thereby disturbing his quality groping time) at that hour. Sesshoumaru was sitting behind the large wooden table in his study, his steely eyes showing his irritation.  
  
"Miroku, Inuyasha is once again missing, and I want you to find him as soon as possible," Sesshoumaru ordered, making Miroku's right eye twitch.  
  
'He's ordering me around as if I were a servant here,' he thought in slight amusement and annoyance.  
  
Sess continued. "Inform him that all the officers of the Soldarian fleet, him included, will be having a general meeting today, and that he should proceed to the King's palace by exactly noon today."  
  
Miroku gave him a near-mock salute, not forgetting that he was actually one of the lower ranking officers of the fleet, and therefore under Sesshoumaru. After the colonel returned his gesture, he gave a swift one- eighty and left to find his best friend.  
  
"Mou, Inuyasha!" Miroku said to himself in annoyance. 'It has only been ten days since his awarding and he is already acting strangely.'  
  
The hanyou had been restless since the attack that Naraku had launched on the night of his awarding. He barely went anywhere without Kagome, and even had special locks installed everywhere on her bedroom, her windows and drains included.  
  
If one were to watch the two of them together, one would think they were in courtship. Kagome wore the hair comb that he had given her all the time. She was never seen up and without it. Also, just a couple of days before, there had been a rumor that the hanyou and princess were seen kissing in the palace veranda, but Inuyasha had vehemently denied it when Miroku asked.  
  
The master and concubine dined together, walked together, and the only things they did not do together were bathe and sleep. But though it seemed like the two were at relative peace with each other, Inuyasha had grumpily told Miroku that the two were friends at best, and their companionship was all pretension. And his sticking with Kagome also had to do with her being the key.  
  
But he could swear that he had caught Kagome throwing small secretive glances at Inuyasha... She was also starting to smile a bit...  
  
'But still, they ARE together a lot more often than any two people on Soldari are,' he thought. 'Maybe someday... Kagome will learn to forgive Inuyasha.'  
  
-----/---@  
  
"Sango-san, how do you do?" Hojo said as Sango walked up to him, holding Kagome's breakfast on a tray. The young soldier was the one tasked to watch Kagome's door for the day, and he smiled as Sango approached to serve her mistress.  
  
"I'm fine, Hojo-kun. Have you been here all night?" she asked amicably.  
  
"Aa. I'm rather sleepy now, but Shippou-san will be here shortly to replace me, I believe," he said as he moved to open the door.  
  
"Shippou? I thought he had been assigned to guard Kikyo-sama?"  
  
"He was yesterday. He didn't look too happy when he got out of his shift, though."  
  
The door to the bedroom opened, and Sango called out as soon as she came in. She and Kagome had grown to be good friends over the past ten days, and managed to get to know each other well. That was, during the short periods of time she was in her room without Inuyasha.  
  
Sango smirked. Inuyasha really took his 'protecting' seriously.  
  
"Kagome? I'm here with your breakfast!" she said with a smile, looking around the messy room. 'That's odd... Kagome has never left her bed unmade.'  
  
She walked towards the dresser where Kagome kept her supplies, and she gave a small sound of surprise upon seeing a small gem-encrusted gold comb resting on the bureau. 'This is the comb that Inuyasha gave her for her birthday... she never leaves without this!'  
  
She took a small step towards the bathroom when something glittering beneath her feet caught her eye. She looked down and found Kagome's broken hand mirror beside a bottle of what was unmistakably morning cream.  
  
Sango looked around in alarm. The unmade bed... the broken things... the comb...  
  
She ran out of the room and straight into Hojo and Shippou, who were at the moment exchanging shifts. Miroku, who had been on his way down the staircase, noticed her panicked look and had turned to ask before she blurted out the reason for her distress...  
  
"Hojo! Houshi-sama! Kagome-sama... she's gone!"  
  
"Nani?!"  
  
-----/---@  
  
"Nani?!"  
  
Inuyasha almost grinned at Kagome's shocked look. She was staring at him with wide eyes, her hand on its way to her mouth to pop a small chunk of bread in.  
  
"You're kidding."  
  
"No, I'm not," Inuyasha said in triumph. "It's true. You can ask him if you don't believe me."  
  
Kagome just looked at him skeptically before she turned her head, popped the food into her mouth and brushed some grass off her nightgown.  
  
The two of them were sitting in one of the smaller palace gardens, eating breakfast out of a bag of food that Inuyasha had brought. He had come to her room very early that morning with the food, startling her so much she dropped her mirror and bottle of cream. He had come in through one of her windows using his ID card, which was used to open all the other locks in her room.  
  
He had not even given her enough time to change her clothes. And from his state of dress - or undress, however one would call his present state - one could easily tell that he had just leapt out of bed on impulse as well. They had run off with her on his back, which was their 'usual' way of travel.  
  
Kagome eyed him out of the corner of her eye. He was sitting across from her, wearing nothing but a wide blue sleeping hakama and a VERY loose white kimono that showed off nearly his entire chiseled chest, allowing Kagome to happily feast her eyes on him.  
  
'Ugh! What am I thinking, ogling at him like that!?' she berated herself. But she had to admit... he looked incredible in his own rugged way.  
  
"I haven't seen much of your brother, I admit," she started. "But from what I HAVE seen of him, I seriously doubt that he would stoop that low..."  
  
"Well, he did... and all because of that girl. He never thought that anyone would find out, but I did..."  
  
"So you use that knowledge for blackmail every chance you get?"  
  
"Right."  
  
"You are unbelievable," Kagome said, a grin beginning to tug at the corners of her lips. "Why anyone would wish to blackmail family is beyond me."  
  
"We're not exactly one happy family you know," Inuyasha replied, popping a whole slice of wheat bread into his mouth. "Besides, it's the only way I could get what I want from him. I actually used that threat on him when I asked for you to be my concubine."  
  
Kagome's lips went up into a full grin. "I guess when force is required..."  
  
"Always attack your enemy's weakest point, I say."  
  
Both of them stared at each other for a moment, before bursting into laughter. Kagome was starting to wonder what was going on... they were enemies, right? No wait... she was putting on a show. She had to remember that she was only putting on a show to gain his trust, so she could have HER revenge.  
  
She had tears in her eyes by the time they both managed to calm down. She just couldn't help but keep the image of what Inuyasha had said from popping into her mind every other second. It was too hilarious!  
  
"Well, if he did that just for Rin, why don't I ever see her around the palace?" she asked distractedly as she finally noticed that Inuyasha was still carrying his sword around.  
  
That made Inuyasha clam up. "We don't know."  
  
"Nani? What do you mean, you don't know? I thought Sesshoumaru liked keeping an eye on her?" she asked in confusion.  
  
"That's just it. It was during the ninth war that I went to. Sess and I were fighting together on that planet, and when we came back... she was gone," Inuyasha replied, surprising the princess. "She went missing while we were away, and we have yet to find her."  
  
"How long ago was this?" Kagome asked.  
  
"About 4 months ago."  
  
"What? And you still have no idea where she is? But... what if something happened to her?" Kagome asked, appalled.  
  
"Don't think we didn't try to find her," Inuyasha said, laying back onto the thick grass. "He spent an entire two months looking, pushing everybody else to look as well. But she was gone. We couldn't find her scent, nothing. The state had to declare her dead after three months."  
  
"Oh my God..." she said, laying on her side, leaning on her elbow to look down at Inuyasha. "He must have been devastated..."  
  
"He still is. Sess was at least bearable before Rin went missing. He would never admit it, but Rin's disappearance did a hell of a lot of damage."  
  
"Poor guy..."  
  
Inuyasha was about to say something to change the topic, when the sound of an alarm trumpet suddenly went off, startling the two. They sat up in alarm as it sounded one more time.  
  
"What was that?" Kagome asked.  
  
"Alarm... somebody important has been kidnapped."  
  
"What?"  
  
Inuyasha immediately ushered Kagome onto his back, forgetting all about the bag of food. He leapt up and headed at breakneck speed, making Kagome give a small squeak of surprise.  
  
He got to the palace just as his brother came out the door to face the lined up troops. He dropped Kagome to the floor beside him.  
  
"Sesshoumaru! What's going on?" he asked, and was surprised when the man turned to him in what looked to him like Sesshoumaru's version of surprised relief – slightly widened eyes.  
  
Sesshoumaru turned to look at an apprehensive Kagome, before turning back to his brother. "Inuyasha, you enormous idiot," he said as he approached, the sound of relief and various other reactions coming from the guards. "We had thought that you and your bitch had gotten kidnapped."  
  
He then turned his eyes to their outfits, which were comfortable to say the least, covered slightly in grass and lint. "This Sesshoumaru implores you that the next time you and your woman decide to have a woodland tryst, at least leave me a note to avoid alarm in the manor."  
  
Both blushed hard at the implications of the statement, and their simultaneous sputtering left the lined up guards snickering with amusement.  
  
"We did NOT have a tryst!" Inuyasha managed to sputter out before Kagome's face turned into a full tomato.  
  
"Well then, why are you both in your sleepers?" Miroku said from the front of the lines, grinning from ear to ear.  
  
"We had a picnic! Nothing else!" Kagome said, the magenta tint still on her cheeks. She saw Sango standing by the door, looking down at her hands with a blush.  
  
Inuyasha then turned to grab Kagome's arm, pulling her towards the house as a torrent of innumerable curses tumbled from his lips, clearly showing his anger. But the blush on his cheeks said otherwise...  
  
-----/---@  
  
"I'm sorry Kagome. It's just that... I *really* thought that you had gotten kidnapped!" Sango cried as Kagome sat on the edge of her bed, wearing her green house hakama and white kimono, drying her freshly washed hair and carefully tucking the golden comb Inuyasha had given her into her raven locks. A bath... finally...  
  
"It's alright. It was rather embarrassing though," Kagome answered with a giggle.  
  
Sango smiled back, but she knew the real reason why she had been so paranoid in the first place... Naraku was around, and she knew that he was after her. Inuyasha was so shaken up that he went to Kaede every time he wasn't with Kagome. It was as if Kagome and Kaede were the only people Inuyasha bothered to talk to as of late...  
  
"Sango," Kagome's soft voice cut her thoughts off. "Do you remember the night of Inuyasha's awarding? That man who took your princess... who is he?"  
  
Sango blanched. "Nani? Hasn't Inuyasha told you yet?"  
  
"Iie. Not yet. He keeps derailing the conversation whenever I get anywhere near that topic. It's like he doesn't want to talk about it."  
  
"If he doesn't, it's of good reason."  
  
"Well, I want to know why," she replied. "Sango... Inuyasha and I are together all the time but we never get anywhere. He hasn't even called me by my name yet..."  
  
Sango looked at Kagome's crestfallen appearance, and her heart went out to her. Oh well...  
  
"Alright, I'll tell you," she said, making Kagome's face instantly light up. "But promise me you would never tell Inuyasha that I did."  
  
"Promise!"  
  
-----/---@  
  
"I barely let her out of my sight, old woman. She won't get hurt," Inuyasha confidently told Kaede. After dropping Kagome off into her room, he had gone to his own to briefly change into his usual clothes. He tugged at his haori, adjusting the collar. "Besides, with Tetsusaiga, nothing could get in my way."  
  
"Inuyasha, I still think that it would be wise for her to learn how to use her powers. They would come in handy, and help protect her during times when you may not be there..." the old miko replied. "Making her learn how to defend herself will not mean that she would be able to summon the Shikon no Tama."  
  
"I don't want to take any chances!" He replied. "That gem killed a lot of people when it was last released. I don't want it to happen today! Besides, you know what happened to Rin... she's not even THAT powerful of a miko."  
  
"We don't know for sure if she is dead," Kaede snapped.  
  
"We don't know if she isn't!" he snapped back. "The moment Kagome learns of her connection to the Shikon no Tama hell will break loose. She'll be an instant target, not just by Naraku!"  
  
"Inuyasha, you moron... she already is a target."  
  
"But..."  
  
"Kaede-sama!" Shippou's voice suddenly resounded right outside Kaede's small shrine. Inuyasha could swear that he smelled anxiety on the boy...  
  
Kaede slowly stood to approach the door. She went outside to greet him, leaving Inuyasha to his thoughts.  
  
'Kagome,' he thought. 'You are such a pain in the ass... but gods... I love her smile.'  
  
"Inuyasha!" Kaede's voice broke through his musings. "Shippou is here with some bad news..."  
  
"What?" he asked as he sat up. Shippou came into the house looking as troubled as he smelled.  
  
"Inuyasha-senpai," he said nervously. "Kagome-sama was kidnapped. It's for sure now... we saw her get carried away by the youkai."  
  
"WHAT?!" he yelled. "You were all there and you were unable to save her?"  
  
"Gomen..."  
  
"Well, what are you waiting for? Let's go! See you baabaa," Inuyasha said, picking up his sword as he dashed out the door with Shippou at his heels.  
  
-----/---@  
  
Kagome slowly opened her eyes, a jolt of pain running through her body as she groggily tried to sit up. She was laying on something hard and cold, something she could only guess was a concrete floor.  
  
'What in the gods' name is going on?' she thought. One moment she was talking to Sango, next she was here in this dark place. It was so very dark... she could see nothing, and the last memory she had was of a scream of fright before everything went black.  
  
"Ugh... where am I?" she queried into the darkness, and was more than shocked when a small female voice answered her.  
  
"You're in Tarumo's dungeon," he voice said, making Kagome turn her head futilely to the direction of the voice. She tried hard to see anything, but alas, she had always been night-blind.  
  
"I'm glad to know you're ok. You looked awful when Tarumo brought you in," she continued, as a faint sound of footsteps made their way towards Kagome.  
  
"Who are you?" Kagome asked. A sudden spark made her yelp and cover her eyes from the sudden brightness. When she looked up again, the room was lit by the light of a burning piece of wood, which served like a small torch. The wood was being held by a small pale hand, and following the hand up to slender arms, she was surprised to find a young woman, almost the same age as herself, staring at her with a small, unsure smile.  
  
The girl was lovely, but it was apparent from the color of her skin that she had not seen the sun in a while. Her small thin lips looked slightly parched, and her vibrant green eyes stared at Kagome from beneath dark brown bangs. She was wearing a very worn-out yellow kimono and no shoes, her waist-length hair tied into a low ponytail.  
  
"Are you feeling alright?" she continued to ask, and Kagome gave a small grunt of distress.  
  
"My entire body feels like it is being ripped up. What happened to me? Who brought me here? Who are you?" she asked the girl, who had turned somewhere off to her side and seemed to be tinkering with something. A moment later, the girl seemed to have found what she was looking for, as she stuck the burning piece of wood into a gap in the floor.  
  
"Come closer and let me help," she said.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Come here," the woman said again. "I can heal you."  
  
Kagome made her way over to her unsurely, carefully crawling closer to her. She winced as the woman touched her right arm, and was about to ask what she was doing when a small halo of light appeared around the woman's hands. Kagome looked on in awe as the woman's hands passed over her wounds, the light healing almost everything it touched.  
  
By the time she was done, Kagome felt a whole lot better. "Arigatou..." she said as the girl pulled away.  
  
"It was nothing," she replied with a small smile. "I'm sorry if I wasn't able to heal everything. I'm not a very powerful miko."  
  
"Oh no, you were wonderful!" Kagome hurried to say. "Thanks again."  
  
"No problem. By the way, why did Tarumo kidnap you?"  
  
"Nani?"  
  
"Tarumo. Why did he bring you here?"  
  
Kagome thought for a while. 'Tarumo...' so that was the name of her kidnapper!  
  
"I have no idea," she replied. "Maybe it's because of my master. He always gets into fights,"  
  
"Oh," the girl said. "So, are you a servant or a concubine?"  
  
"A concubine."  
  
"I see. May I ask who your lord is?"  
  
"May I know what is going on first? Why are you in here with my kidnapper?" Kagome asked the woman, who gave her a small smile.  
  
"I don't really know what is going on, but I will try to answer," she replied. "I was kidnapped a few months ago for a certain man, but it seemed as if the man didn't want to have me after all and left me to Tarumo. He refused to bring me back home, and has kept me servant for those past few months. I think I was kidnapped for my pathetic miko abilities, but I can't be sure," she explained shortly. "Now may I know who your lord is?"  
  
Kagome was overwhelmed. Something about the girl's story made bells resound in her brain. But anyway... "My lord's name is Inuyasha."  
  
The girl gave a small gasp, before excitement made its way into her eyes. "Did you say Inuyasha?"  
  
"Hai. Inuyasha. From the Inuyoukai clan. Do you know him?"  
  
"Oh gods, you're his concubine?! How things have changed since I was kidnapped! He never even looked at girls before! I mean, he was the town virgin and..."  
  
"You know him!?"  
  
"Oh yes!" she replied. "I am Rin, a good friend of his brother Sesshoumaru."  
  
-----/---@  
  
"What the hell happened here, Sango? You were supposed to watch over her!" Inuyasha yelled at the slightly wounded Sango.  
  
They were in Kagome's devastated bedroom, Inuyasha snapping at anyone who came within a half-mile radius of him. One of the walls had been torn down, her things scattered all over the floor. The noise of troops being assembled by Sesshoumaru on the grounds reached their ears. He knew that the guards were confused about why they made such a huge deal of Kagome getting kidnapped, but only Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku and Sesshoumaru knew why... Even Sesshoumaru had looked panicked when Kagome was abducted.  
  
Naraku was behind it. And Kagome could be the thing that would lead him to taking over the world.  
  
"I tried to protect her!" Sango protested. "But the youkai... he was fast. Kagome and I were talking when the west wall suddenly collapsed and he came in here, bat wings and all, a ball of youki headed for Kagome. I tried to block it, but it was so sudden, Inuyasha! I fought him, but he managed to grab Kagome from me. I didn't have my Hiraikotsu, I should have brought it!"  
  
"Well, how did the fucking thing get into the manor in the first place?!" Inuyasha whirled on the terrified security commander, who gave a small salute before speaking.  
  
"It was incredibly fast, my Lord. He had managed to get in before the radars even detected him. I am sorry, Inuyasha-sama," he said.  
  
"Sorry? You're fucking sorry?! If something happens to her, you WILL be sorry, you hear me!?"  
  
"Hai, Inuyasha-sama."  
  
Miroku came in at that moment, holding a notepad in his hands, his face smudged with dirt.  
  
"Inuyasha," he panted, holding the pad out for Inuyasha to take. The hanyou grabbed it roughly, surveying the sketch and words as Miroku spoke.  
  
"I learned of the youkai. His name is Tarumo. He is a bat youkai, and according to our youkai informants, the man occasionally works for Naraku. One of our prisoners said he'd give me his location in exchange for freedom..." Miroku said quickly. He, of all people, knew Inuyasha's temper...  
  
"Well, did you let him go?" Inuyasha asked.  
  
"Yes. He wouldn't talk otherwise."  
  
"Good. What did he say?" Inuyasha asked.  
  
"The directions he gave me are at the next page of that pad," Miroku said as Inuyasha hurriedly turned to the next page. "He said that Tarumo lives in an abandoned dungeon in the northern mountains. His palace is sealed off scents, so no one could find it."  
  
"Great," Inuyasha said, reading over the directions one last time. He then tore off the page and leapt off the room, landing a few meters behind Sesshoumaru.  
  
"What is it, Inuyasha?"  
  
"These are the directions that Miroku got from his sources,". The bastard's name is Tarumo. He's got Kagome in a scent sealed dungeon," he replied, handing Sesshoumaru the sheet before adding in a whisper, "Naraku's involved. I'd better get going. Gather the troops and follow me."  
  
Inuyasha flew off before Sesshoumaru even had a chance to reply.  
  
'Naraku,' he thought angrily. 'Don't you dare hurt Kagome.'  
  
-----/---@  
  
"You're RIN?!" Kagome exclaimed, surprising the woman. 'THE Rin? The one who Sesshoumaru did that... THING for?'  
  
"Yes. Has Inuyasha mentioned me to you?"  
  
"Hai. Just this morning, in fact," Kagome answered, the surprise still in her eyes. 'What a coincidence... he just told me about her this morning...'  
  
"Well, it seems we already have common ground!" Rin continued happily.  
  
"Wait, Rin... I thought you were dead..." Kagome said. "Inuyasha told me that he and Sesshoumaru had gone looking for you, for months! And they never found you, not the slightest scent!"  
  
"They looked for me?" Rin asked, a soft look coming over her eyes.  
  
"Didn't you think they would?"  
  
"Oh, I thought they would... but... I guess I never really expected them to..." Rin said with a small smile. "And I would have thought that they'd declare me dead in only a few days."  
  
"Sesshoumaru took your 'death' real hard."  
  
"He did?"  
  
"Yeah," Kagome said, and was surprised when a suspicious sheen made Rin's eyes look brighter. "Rin, are you ok?"  
  
"Ee... It's just that... when I found out that you knew Inuyasha, so many memories came rushing back to me and... I just realized that I miss Sesshoumaru and everybody else so much," she said with a bitter smile. "And they may never find me because they can't smell me."  
  
"Don't worry," Kagome said in haste. "Inuyasha will find us. I just know he will..."  
  
"You really trust him, don't you?"  
  
Kagome froze. She didn't even realize that she had been saying that...  
  
"What is your name, by the way? I don't think I've ever seen you before," Rin said suddenly, snatching Kagome from her highly confused thoughts.  
  
"Oh!" she said. "Yes, how rude of me. My name is Kagome. Kagome Higurashi."  
  
Rin went silent. "Higurashi? As in Lord Higurashi of Calderia?" she whispered.  
  
"Um... yes. I'm his daughter." Kagome said uncertainly.  
  
"I see," Rin replied, her smile growing a bit hard. "So that's why I have never seen you before. You're from a different land."  
  
"Yes. I was brought here less than two weeks ago."  
  
"Why are you here?" Rin asked, and Kagome noticed that her voice had lost a tiny bit of its warmth. She was not unfriendly, but she was not as warm as before.  
  
'Does she hate my father, too?' Kagome wondered, before trying to placate the girl. She knew that the Soldarians hated her father... "I'm not like my father, Rin. I swear," she said, nearly wincing at her own words.  
  
Rin blushed, before her smile became apologetic. "I'm sorry, I guess I was behaving differently again... It's just that, Lord Higurashi..."  
  
"It's ok."  
  
"Besides, I know you love your father, and..."  
  
"Loved."  
  
"Nani?" Rin asked.  
  
"He's dead. Inuyasha killed him." Kagome replied, a frown starting to tug at her lips.  
  
"Oh..."  
  
If Rin had anything else to say after that announcement, they may not find out anytime soon, for the sound of heavy footsteps slowly announced another presence in the dim dungeon.  
  
"Oh, gripes..." Rin said, her face going visibly pale. She groped around for the torch, putting it out in a great hurry, her haste making her burn her hand. "Ow, ow, ow!"  
  
"Nani? What's going on, Rin?" Kagome asked as Rin huddled closer to her, shivering.  
  
"Tarumo..." she said softly, brokenly. "He's coming..."  
  
-----/---@  
  
A/N: Done! Hope you all enjoyed!  
  
Arigatou to all those who reviewed my previous chapters, and please review this one too! I want to know what you guys think. ^_^ Ja ne!  
  
ScarletRaven1001 


	7. Connection

A/N: Hello! I'm back! I hope you all liked the last chapter that I posted. Hehe... Gomen I took so long again. I sprained both ankles and can't walk for ages. Gods, I am such a stupid klutz. And since I can't walk, I couldn't go to the computer shop for an update. I don't have Internet access at home. Now THAT'S pathetic.  
  
Anyway, I just wanted to clear something up. It seems I confused some people with the Rin incident. Sesshoumaru searching for Rin after she 'vanished' is NOT the thing that Inuyasha uses to blackmail his brother. That would be just foul, ne? It's another thing... I haven't mentioned the blackmail-worthy incident yet! As you guys may recall, Inu and Kagome had been laughing at something before she even asked where Rin was...  
  
As for the name Tarumo, it has no meaning. I just dropped three pebbles onto my hiragana chart and combined the three characters that they landed on. Hehe... It's true.  
  
Thanks to all those who reviewed my previous chapters. I hope you all like this one! Arigatou for reading, and please read and review!  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Damn.  
  
-----/---  
  
A BOND OF THORNS  
  
Connection  
  
-----/---  
  
Sesshoumaru shook his head in irritation as Inuyasha's words flashed into his mind for the hundredth time since his departure. He was now sitting in one of the large transport vehicles with his troops, on their way to the dungeon.  
  
The vehicles were all a similar deep blue hue, looking like large container trucks with rows of seats and a parcel case for possible supplies. He sat up front with the driver, pointing out the directions to the youkai's place. Theirs was the first of the seven trucks, each containing about twenty people. An emergency medical van brought up the rear.  
  
'Kuso,' the demon lord thought impatiently. 'I could probably walk faster than these machines,' he thought angrily, before Inuyasha's words flashed into his mind again.  
  
"These are the directions that Miroku got from his sources. The bastard's name is Tarumo. He's got Kagome in a scent-sealed dungeon. Naraku's involved. I'd better get going. Gather the troops and follow me."   
  
Naraku... he'll be damned if he let that bastard run around with the key. He didn't particularly care about the smart-mouthed bitch, but he knew that if he wanted to live a happy life, he would keep Naraku away from her.  
  
For two reasons – one, she was one half of the key to the Shikon no Tama, as was proven by Kaede when he spoke to her and when Naraku "visited" them during the awarding, and he would most likely kill himself rather than live in a world ruled by Naraku and a tainted Shikon no Tama. Two, without the wench, Inuyasha would undoubtedly pester him to the point that he would end up killing himself.  
  
Another thing... A scent-sealed dungeon. That was what he had said. Something about the fact that the dungeon was scent-sealed sent millions of shivers up his spine. Anticipative shivers. He then realized why the words made bells resound in his head.  
  
'She had disappeared without a trace those months ago. And I couldn't catch her scent. What if she is alive in one of those dungeons?' he thought. 'I know she didn't die four months ago... I can feel it. Could Rin really still be alive?'  
  
"Sesshoumaru-sama?" His wistful musings were cut off when the driver called him. He pointed to a fork in the path. "Which way?"  
  
Sesshoumaru regarded the sketch, then pointed to the right.  
  
-----/---  
  
Rin shuddered at the sound of the approaching footsteps, but Kagome held her head high and waited eagerly for her kidnapper. She generally had no idea who had taken her, or how he looked like, as she had been knocked out before she even realized there was trouble.  
  
"Lay down, Kagome," Rin whispered as she herself did the same. "He will beat you up if you as much as look into his eyes..."  
  
Kagome refused to stay down, even as Rin desperately tried to pull her with herself. "No. He can do what he wants, but I, the hime of Calderia, will not bow down to him!" she said loudly. 'Besides, what the heck kind of name is Tarumo anyway? It doesn't even mean anything."  
  
The sound of footsteps grew nearer, louder, and even Kagome began to feel the beginnings of fright and panic. Rin downright cowered beside her. Soon enough, a dark silhouette of a tall, broad-bodied being appeared in the hallway before her. The man seemed to be holding on to a small light source, so the shadows of the dungeons moved eerily as he approached.  
  
He appeared to be wearing a trench coat, from what Kagome could make out of the shadow. The heavy footsteps got louder, and Kagome outright gasped as the figure revealed itself, under the light of a single candle.  
  
He was the most horrifying creature she had ever seen. The "coat" was his pair of leather wings, ribbed and broad like that of a bat. The wings curved around him and to his front, sealing his body except the one black scaly hand that jutted out to hold the candle. His face, a twisted black mask of fangs and horns, bore a sinister grin that made her insides quiver.  
  
"So," the creature started, his voice hoarse and soft. He turned slightly, lighting a torch that hung on the wall with the candle, before tucking it into one of the small crevices in the concrete. "You have finally decided to awaken. I wish to talk to the key before I give you to Naraku."  
  
As he turned back to look at her, his words brought sudden flashes of memory to Kagome. Key... Naraku...  
  
--- Flashback ---  
  
"How much further is this Kaede person, hanyou? The newly-formed scabs on my feet are begging for rest!" Kagome complained as she followed Inuyasha up a steep set of steps that were carved upon the side of a tall hill. She pushed her hair back, gathering the silken strands with the golden comb she had received from Inuyasha. She had no idea why she was wearing it, but when asked by Sango (who was shocked when she found out that it was from the hanyou), she reasoned simply that it matched her eyes.  
  
"Just a few more steps, wench," he replied, pulling on her sleeve. She furiously pulled her arm back, huffing in indignation as the duke shook his head and continued walking.  
  
Just beyond the rise, she could see a tall white building, narrow enough for her to instantly know that no one would be able to live comfortably in it. Beside it, she could spot the roof of what appeared to be a cottage, resting under the shade of a huge, ancient-looking tree.  
  
The night before had been traumatic, what with the princess getting abducted and rather badly hurt by that Naraku guy, and him demanding her and Inuyasha's surrender. And she STILL didn't know who he was.  
  
"We're here, wench. You can stop huffing."  
  
"Don't call me that."  
  
"Would you prefer bitch, then? Coz that can be arranged," he replied with a scowl.  
  
Kagome was just about to scream a comeback when an old woman, looking obviously winded rushed noisily out of the cottage. She was still holding a rag, so she had clearly not been expecting visitors, and had run out at the signs of some.  
  
It was the unsettling, shocked expression on her face that Kagome could never forget. As well as the thing she said, in an awed stunned voice, the moment she laid eyes on Kagome.  
  
"It's you... The other half of the key..."  
  
--- Flashback ---  
  
Out of the corner of her eye, Kagome noticed Rin raise her head to stare at her, eyes full of barely concealed shock. What was the big deal about that "key" thing anyway? Kaede and Inuyasha never told her anything after Kaede's initial outburst, so it must be unimportant. So why was Rin gawking at her, and why had she been kidnapped?  
  
"Yeah, I'm awake. Now, I demand to know who you are, why you have knocked me unconscious, then brought me here against my will!" she said angrily.  
  
Tarumo just chuckled, before bringing himself to stand right before the cell bars. "I assumed that Rin had told you my name. It is Tarumo, and I brought you here for Naraku. Now, you answer me... how did you, a simpering Calderian princess, manage to possess so much power as to become half of the key?"  
  
Kagome started. 'Power?' she thought in surprise. 'I don't have any power... not even any political power. They were stripped from me when my kingdom fell.'  
  
"What are you talking about?" she hissed, not missing the angry glint in Tarumo's blood-red eyes.  
  
"Don't even deny it, concubine," he stressed the last word. "Though I do not know where the other half is, I know you are half of the key. Anyone with a decent youki or reiryoku can sense it coming from you. The strongest spiritual powers to ever grace this planet... Now, how did you attain it?"  
  
Kagome was astounded. Was he saying that SHE had reiryoku? How could that be? She was just a normal person... how could she have gained spiritual powers?  
  
"Rin," his raspy voice called to the girl who lay bowed on the floor, here eyes locked on Kagome. Rin started at the call, and immediately dropped her head to the floor again.  
  
"Yes, Tarumo-sama," she answered, voice muffled since she was so close to the ground.  
  
"Rise," he ordered, and Rin immediately got to her feet, head still bowed, her dark hair covering her face. "You sensed her powers too, didn't you?" Tarumo asked.  
  
"Hai, Tarumo-sama. But I had no idea that she was the key..." she replied.  
  
Kagome gaped at Rin. What was she saying? And once again... WHAT THE HECK IS SHE A HALF KEY TO? She was a person, for goodness sake, not a piece of metal used for knobs!  
  
"Onegai, Tarumo-sama. Please!" Rin started. "Don't hurt her. Don't force her. She is not lying! I... I... I can sense that she is telling the truth. She has no idea how significant her powers are."  
  
Tarumo laughed out loud at that. "Significant? Her powers are the key to the most powerful thing in the universe! Her powers will bind together the one thing would help Naraku rule the world!" he snickered. "And to think that kind of power belongs to someone who betrayed her own father. Fucking his killer just so she could survive..."  
  
"How DARE you!" Kagome screamed. She stared at Tarumo, seething at his words.  
  
In her anger, however, she hadn't noticed Rin step back from her in fright and astonishment. Neither did she notice the bright glow that suddenly surrounded her body.  
  
'Kagome... she's glowing red!' Rin thought, absently noticing that even Tarumo had backed up a step.  
  
"I am not betraying my father. And I am not sleeping with Inuyasha!" she shouted again as the initial burst of red light faded from her. "It's not like I had a choice when he decided to make me his concubine!"  
  
She was shocked, barely registering what was happening, when Tarumo decided to break down the bars holding them in, pushing Kagome against a wall by her throat with a clawed hand. Fear welled up in her chest, but she agreed to show it. Kagome scrabbled against his hands, digging her nails into his fist as she tried to recapture the breath that he had suddenly pushed out of her.  
  
"Do not raise your voice at me, young lady. Know that the only reason that you still live is that Naraku wants you for your powers. I will not tolerate your insubordination," he hissed.  
  
Kagome merely huffed, no matter how hard that was at her current position. "I am not your slave, so I am not being insubordinate."  
  
Tarumo then tightened his grip around her neck, making Kagome cry out. Rin, though not very powerful, sensed a small amount of power escape Kagome, looking as if it were calling out to someone...  
  
Kagome blearily noticed as Rin began crying beside Tarumo, begging him to free Kagome. Annoyed at her interference, he pulled back the hand not on Kagome, and slapped Rin forcefully against her left cheek, leaving five shallow cuts on her face as she landed unconscious a few feet away from them.  
  
"Let me... go!" Kagome rasped, digging her nails further into his hand. Tarumo winced slightly as her long nails began to draw green blood from his fingers.  
  
"I don't think I will," Tarumo replied. "I think I will choke you until you collapse. Maybe that will keep you unconscious until Naraku arrives."  
  
Kagome scrabbled futilely, knowing that her strength was no match for the demons. Dread warred with a sudden burst of determination that felt out of place in her frightened mind. With her last amount of energy, she shouted out the one word that had suddenly sprung to her mind.  
  
"INUYASHA!!!"  
  
-----/---  
  
Inuyasha paused, looking up at the northern mountains that were covered by tall trees and vines. From his vantage point, perched on the tallest tree in the forest, Inuyasha could almost see every single detail of the mountain, including the almost unnoticeable abandoned-looking fortress in the easternmost part of the range.  
  
Having memorized the directions to the fortress, he checked his mental map and grinned as he realized that the fort that he was looking at was THE fort.  
  
He looked back in the direction he had come from, and saw, much to his irritation, that the trucks carrying the soldiers had barely reached the edge of the forest. He was nearing the end of the damn forest already, so how could they be his "back-up" when they were that further back from him?! Stupid humans.  
  
He leapt up again, heading in the direction of the fortress. If the freed prisoner was telling the truth, then Kagome should be there. If he wasn't telling the truth, then Inuyasha was going to find out who he was, track him down and string him up by his testicles...  
  
Nobody shits Inuyasha and gets away with it.  
  
He was close. He would probably be upon the fortress in a couple of minutes, and excitement coursed through his veins. He popped his knuckles and grinned manically. He was finally gonna be able to kick some ass.  
  
A sudden unknown signal reached Inuyasha's mind, making him lose his balance on the tree he was currently standing on and damn near making him fall. He steadied himself, not understanding what had just happened. It was as if he had felt a sudden blast of... anger. Faint, but it was as if the emotion had just shot into his soul.  
  
He shook his head. He needed to concentrate on what he was doing. He bounded off again, his mind set on finding Kagome when he felt another powerful surge. Inuyasha recognized the blinding anger just as he stopped in front of the fortress. He sniffed the air and grinned. No scent was coming from within the fortress. It was scent-sealed, and definitely the one he was looking for. He readied himself to barge through the door, squaring his shoulders and backing up to be able to break it more easily.  
  
He was running towards it when a glint a few feet before the door caught his eye. He stopped and walked towards it, stooping to pick it up.  
  
'This is... Kagome's comb. The one I gave her.' He straightened with furious determination as he realized that Kagome truly WAS in that fortress. He pocketed the comb, before running straight at the door, breaking through it. Various scents assaulted his nose, Kagome's being among the freshest, as a burst of fright erupted in his soul. He wasn't frightened, and the earlier sudden surges of emotion sure as hell weren't his. But if they weren't, that must mean...  
  
"Shit!" he cursed, running even faster as he tried to smell the air to find Kagome. His soul and nose guided him steadily towards a set of stairs that led down a dark tunnel. Another burst of fright fueled him, determination coursing through his veins as the scent of Kagome became stronger. She was near... so near... her scent came from just beyond that wall...  
  
A sudden cry of his name gave him a sudden surge of power, an angry cry torn from his lips as he crashed through the offending wall.  
  
-----/---  
  
"KAGOME!!!" Inuyasha yelled, storming through the debris that only a few seconds before, had been a thick wall of solid concrete. His sudden arrival startled the youkai that had been holding a weakly struggling Kagome against the far wall. He landed sharply, eyes blazing as the bat youkai dropped Kagome in his haste to face him.  
  
Kagome sucked in a huge gulp of breath as the hands holding her suddenly disappeared. Confused and slightly dazed, she looked ahead of her and nearly cried in joy.  
  
"Inuyasha!"  
  
He stood there, eyes dark as he took in the sight of Kagome, who had light bruises around her neck. Another woman lay a few feet away, her hair covering her face and her scent unrecognizable because of the smell of smoke and dust she had on her.  
  
He again turned his attention to the youkai, who had backed up and was getting ready to run out of the dungeon cell. "You bastard!" he shouted as he rushed forward and rammed a fist into the startled demon's face before he could even move.  
  
Inuyasha raised his hand again, but found it smashed into the wall as he brought it down. 'Damn, he IS fast!' Inuyasha thought as he turned around, seeing the youkai behind him with a fist aimed his way.  
  
He ducked and pushed forward, throwing his weight against Tarumo and knocking him down. Inuyasha leaped up, but found himself on the floor as the demon had managed to grab one of his ankles, pulling him down to the floor.  
  
Tarumo spread his wings and flew away from him, rushing towards Kagome and the other girl. Inuyasha regained his footing just as the demon reached Kagome, snatching her right arm with his left hand.  
  
Inuyasha got to his feet, pulling Tetsusaiga out of its sheath. The sword transformed with a bright glow, and he charged at Tarumo, madly swinging his sword.  
  
The edge of Tetsusaiga caught the bat youkai's left arm, slicing his wrist off. He howled in pain as Kagome screamed in shock when the severed hand stayed latched onto her arm. She hastily grabbed it and pulled it off as the enraged Tarumo began to furiously attack Inuyasha.  
  
Kagome noticed Rin still lying unconscious a few feet away. She ran over to her, keeping her eyes on the furious demons who had now brought each other to the hallway right outside her cell.  
  
Inuyasha had led Tarumo away from the dungeon cell, so as not to put Kagome and the other girl in danger. He was slightly distracted though, when he heard Kagome's voice say the name "Rin", and urge her to get up.  
  
'The other girl is Rin?!' he thought in astonishment, but the small moment proved crucial, since he was dealing with a very fast demon. The youkai saw the opportunity and quickly swiped at Inuyasha's chest, leaving five large gashes across his chest and abdomen.  
  
Angered at the pain in his chest, Inuyasha swung Tetsusaiga again, and grinned maliciously when Tarumo let out a piercing shriek of pain from the large gaping hole in his stomach.  
  
Meanwhile, Kagome had reached Rin and was trying her best to rouse her.  
  
"Rin! Get up!" Kagome whispered hurriedly, as she knelt beside her, pulling the girl's body onto her lap and shaking her. "Rin! Inuyasha's here! We'll be saved!"  
  
Rin roused slowly, blinking bleary eyes as Kagome's face slowly came into view. "Kagome?"  
  
"YES! Rin, get up! Inuyasha's here!"  
  
"What?" Rin asked weakly, following Kagome's eyes to the hallway. Kagome began to stand, pulling her up along with her.  
  
"Come on! We have to try to help him!" Kagome said. "If we don't, we might not be able to get out of here!"  
  
Rin got to her feet, her hand coming up to rub the painful spot on her cheek. She followed Kagome out the cell, eyes widening when she saw the scene before her.  
  
Kagome gasped as she saw the bright red marks across Inuyasha's chest, leaking with thick blood. She started to run to him on impulse, but Rin held her arm back as she did.  
  
"No!" she hissed. "You can't put yourself in danger! If what Tarumo said about you is true, then I will not allow you to die!"  
  
"What do you want me to do, watch and let him die?" Kagome said as she tried to pull her arms from Rin's tight grip.  
  
"He won't die from that wound, Kagome! I have seen him run with a sword through his abdomen and laugh about it," Rin said. "You have to stay back!"  
  
"NO! I have to help him Rin!" she broke free as she saw Inuyasha thrown violently to her direction.  
  
Inuyasha angrily tried to get another clear shot of the youkai, but his thick leather wings were as much of a barrier as any shield could have been. As he struck him again, Tarumo flipped back his wing, knocking him back a few feet and right at Kagome's feet.  
  
"Inuyasha!" she cried as she knelt down beside the fallen man. "Daijobu?"  
  
"What are you doing here, wench? Get back in the cell!" Inuyasha snarled as he pushed himself up, bracing himself on his sword. Kagome held him by his arm as he did so, her face a mask of concern.  
  
"No! I can't stay there and watch you get battered!"  
  
"You are my legal possession! Do as I say!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
As the two argued, however, they didn't notice Tarumo, weakened as he was by the wound on his torso, begin to gather his energy into a ball in his remaining hand. Rin did, however, and she shouted a warning a second before Tarumo released it.  
  
"Yasha! Kagome! Look out!"  
  
Both turned their attention back to Tarumo at Rin's shout, and as the ball of energy approached, both thought of only one thing:  
  
'I have to protect Kagome!'  
  
'I have to protect Inuyasha!'  
  
Kagome reacted to the shot with a shout, subconsciously pulling Inuyasha to her. Inuyasha reacted almost the same, grabbing Kagome and spinning so that the energy ball would collide with his back, and not harm the girl he clutched protectively to his chest.  
  
But... nothing came. Kagome opened her eyes when a few seconds had already passed and the energy ball still had not reached them. Inuyasha turned his head slowly to look at Tarumo. He was surprised to find the bat youkai staring at them in shock, his eyes roving a small area around them.  
  
Inuyasha followed Tarumo's eyes, and got a shock himself. He and Kagome were surrounded by a glowing aura, and judging from the fact that he had not gotten hit by the energy ball, that glowing arc of gold must have somehow acted as a forcefield to protect them.  
  
Kagome was looking just as stunned, and she looked over her shoulder to gauge Rin's reaction. Rin was looking even more stunned, and her eyes kept darting from Inuyasha and back to Kagome.  
  
Tarumo's voice broke through their shock. "The key... the two halves of the key..."  
  
His words made Inuyasha's full attention snap back into place. 'That bastard figured it out... if word gets out that Kagome and I are the full key, hell will break lose.'  
  
Before he can move though, Tarumo had fled the scene, rushing down the corridor and up the stairs faster than their eyes can follow.  
  
"SHIT!"  
  
"You got that right, Rin." Inuyasha replied, before letting go of Kagome and attempting to follow Tarumo.  
  
-----/---  
  
At exactly the same time that Inuyasha broke down the dungeon's door, the scent-sealing spell around the fortress broke, releasing the scents from within. Sesshoumaru, still quite a distance away, jerked up from his bored position on the trucks front passenger seat.  
  
'That scent,' he thought, sniffing discreetly as he tried to decide whether or not he was hallucinating. The scent, as far away as he was from the source, was something he could never mistake...  
  
"Rin..." he said softly, then straightening in shock and anticipation. He then thrust the map at the driver, before suddenly leaping off the running vehicle, running so fast, the driver didn't even get to see him land on the ground.  
  
Sesshoumaru raced into the forest, using his poison claws to bring down tress that stood in his way. He was but a blur of white in the green façade of the forest, his golden eyes a flash of amber twinkling from a distance.  
  
He was running at a speed rarely attained even by other demons of speed, and yet he felt like he was still unforgivably slow. He urged his legs to carry him faster, wishing not for the first time that he could go at the speed of light.  
  
It was her scent, he was sure of it. No other scent could cloud his mind so completely, could make him lose his mask of calm. It was her. And as he approached the tall form of the fortress, he smelled a foul scent of a bat demon – bearing traces of Rin's blood.  
  
His golden eyes rapidly darkened to furious slits of red, and as he came upon the castle, the being with Rin's blood emerged from the door.  
  
Tarumo didn't know what hit him. One second he was running from Inuyasha, next he was pinned to the ground, one of his eyes torn from its socket and blood running more rapidly down his front. He screamed in pain as Seshoumaru loomed over him, his claws dripping sickly green blood.  
  
"Where is she?" he asked softly, almost calmly.  
  
"The key is with the hanyou..." he started, but was stopped by Seshoumaru's hand pressing tightly against his windpipe.  
  
"I don't care about the Calderian!" Seshoumaru snarled. "Where is Rin?"  
  
"Sesshoumaru!" Inuyasha's voice called from the doorway, but Sesshoumaru kept his eyes on Tarumo.  
  
"Where is she?!" Sesshoumaru asked more forcefully, shaking Tarumo as Inuyasha approached. Inuyasha tapped his shoulder and spoke, without even hoping for the demon to look his way.  
  
"Rin is in the dungeon with Kagome," he began, and that made Seshoumaru's attention focus on him. He stared intently as Inuyasha continued. "Go to her. I know you want to. And leave that bastard to me..." he continued, cracking his knuckles in anticipation.  
  
Sesshoumaru immediately leapt off Tarumo, rushing into the fortress. Inuyasha didn't even give Tarumo a chance to rise, though, as he immediately shoved him back down and pointed Tetsusaiga at his throat.  
  
"Was it Naraku?" Inuyasha demanded.  
  
Tarumo looked defiantly up at him, not saying a word. Inuyasha then pressed the blade of his sword against Tarumo's neck, drawing a generous amount of blood in the process. The bat youkai's remaining eye rolled back in pain as he nodded weakly.  
  
"Good. Now, where is he?" Inuyasha asked again.  
  
"I don't know," Tarumo replied. He gives us orders from different messengers.  
  
"Us?"  
  
"I don't know who the others are! None of us know who the others are. And I don't know who my messenger really is," Tarumo said.  
  
"Ok. Thanks, and..." Inuyasha paused, a feral grin making its way to his face. "Sorry, coz I can't let you live. You now officially know too much about me and Kagome. Goodbye."  
  
And with that, Inuyasha pushed the tip of his sword into Tarumo's throat, the latter letting out a strangled gurgle before the scent of death overtook the musty scent of the bat youkai.  
  
-----/---  
  
Sesshoumaru followed Rin's scent into the lower part of the fortress. Excitement rushed through him as the scent became unbelievably nearer. "She's alive!" he said softly to himself as he rounded one last corner...  
  
Coming to stand but a few feet away from her...Seeing her for the first time in four long months. She was considerably pale and thin, and he seethed at Tarumo for having kept her there, fighting the urge to go back to the dying youkai, tearing him from Inuyasha's grasp, and killing him ten times over.  
  
She was speaking to Kagome, holding her arm, and his stealthy entrance did not alert both of them to his presence. He composed himself slightly before speaking.  
  
"Rin," the one word was full of so much meaning.  
  
Both women looked up, and while Kagome was rather pleased to see the youkai commander there, the same could not be said for Rin.  
  
She was waaaaay beyond pleased.  
  
"Se-Sesshoumaru?"  
  
Sesshoumaru gave a very small smile at the sight of Rin's shocked and near ecstatic face. "I am glad you are alive, Rin."  
  
Rin's bottom lip began to quiver at the sight of Sesshoumaru's smile. She forgot Kagome was there as she continued to stare at the man before her. 'Gods... it had been so long...' she thought blearily, approaching him with slow, unsure steps. So many times she had dreamed of this... Gods, she hoped it wasn't another dream!  
  
"Is it really you, Sess?" Rin asked softly as she walked up to him. She reached out a hand, her fingers grazing his chest armor, and her breath sobbed out of her throat.  
  
"Sesshoumaru!" she cried, throwing herself at him, helpless tears rushing out of her eyes. "Gods, it's you! It's really you!"  
  
Sesshoumaru, finally unable to hold in the emotions that seeing her had brought him, crushed her to his chest, burying his face into her hair. "Rin..." he whispered softly. "I have missed you, my Rin."  
  
"I missed you too!" Rin cried, not missing the slight change that the emotionless demon's voice took. "I missed you so much!"  
  
-----/---  
  
Kagome felt awkward at watching the two reunite. Were they lovers? She felt like an intruder in their private moment.  
  
She looked around and decided to leave the two behind and find Inuyasha. She was sure he had run out of the dungeon, so where to?  
  
She followed the long dungeon hallway and found herself facing a set of stairs. She slowly climbed the steps, her hand rubbing the bruise on her neck. She followed another hallway as she reached the tope, following the light she could see ahead.  
  
She turned into the main hall, and from there, saw Inuyasha sheathing his sword as he stood over a dead Tarumo. Excitement suddenly rushed to her and she ran to him, holding her skirts in her hand.  
  
"Inuyasha!" she cried stumbling slightly in her haste. She barely lost her balance, but Inuyasha was there, supporting her, in an instant.  
  
He helped her straighten, holding her by her arms, as he quickly scanned her for injuries. His eyes instantly went to her throat, and before he could stop himself, he reached down and gently ran his hand over the bruising.  
  
"This looks kinda painful. Are you ok, Kagome?" he asked, turning her so she looked straight at him. As she turned to face him, though, he found that her face was full of surprise. "What?"  
  
"You... said my name," she remarked, a small grin finding it's way to her lips as she held onto his arms.  
  
Inuyasha blanched in surprise. "I... I did? No I didn't!"  
  
"Yes, you did!" she replied impatiently. "Just now, you did! You also called me back there in the dungeon. You called me by my name!"  
  
"Keh," Inuyasha replied, turning to look at anything but her. "So I guess I did. So what?!"  
  
"Oh, nothing," Kagome replied, she herself surprised at how much that little thing made her happy.  
  
Inuyasha cleared his throat then. "So, does this hurt?" he asked, pointing to the bruises yet again.  
  
"Not really," she replied. "But I would like to have it bandaged a bit and... what was that?"  
  
A distant noise rumbled faintly in the background, and Inuyasha grumbled as he realized what it was. "Backup's here. Keh. A jolly lot of help they did."  
  
The troops arrived a short while later, and Kagome and Inuyasha watched as they threw Tarumo's body into a rectangular furnace and proceeded to burn it with a fire demon's help. He then led Kagome to the ambulance, watching as the medic bandaged her neck.  
  
A sudden thought came to him. "Kagome, have you seen Sesshoumaru?"  
  
"Hai," she replied, wincing at the alcohol the medic dabbed on her. Inuyasha growled at the medic to be more careful. "He met up with Rin in the dungeons. Isn't he out yet?"  
  
"I dunno. Oh wait, there he is now."  
  
Sesshoumaru emerged from the fortress, holding an unconscious Rin in his arms. The girl had exhausted herself crying, and her dehydration and fright all kicked in at once, making her lose consciousness.  
  
He headed for the ambulance, placing Rin on the bed that the other medics had lain out. He then turned to Inuyasha, his face one again a mask of calm, and said "She's alive. I told you she was."  
  
"I know," Inuyasha replied as his brother's face softened for a moment as he stared at the unconscious girl. "And... I'm glad."  
  
-----/---  
  
A/N: Done! Haha! Sorry again for the delay!  
  
Thanks again to all those who read, reviewed, and even visited my previous chaps. I hope you liked this chap, and please review! No flames please...  
  
Ja ne!  
  
ScarletRaven 


	8. Trepidations

A/N: Hello! I'm back! I'm really sorry, but it's hard to update quickly since I still don't have Internet service at home. Then, there's the matter that I haven't been in the best of moods lately, what with my damn busy school schedule, and screwed-up personal life. By the way, I have revised the first TWO chapters of this fic. They are relatively small, albeit rather meaningful changes, and you might want to check them out. On with the chap! Enjoy, and please, read and review!

Disclaimer: If I owned Inuyasha, I would be filthy rich, and would probably not bother going through the turmoil of tertiary education. I'm still in school, aren't I?

oooooooooo

A BOND OF THORNS

Trepidations

oooooooooo

Inuyasha woke up from the best night's sleep he had ever had. He was feeling refreshed, and he was cocooned in warmth that seemed to blanket him from head to toe. It would have been THE best morning ever, had he not been suddenly alerted to the sound of muffled sniffles and pleads. Raising his head up, he reared back as he stared at Kagome, slumbering in his arms.

"Iya! No!"

Her head was on his chest, one of her arms around him as the other lay between them, clenching and unclenching with her soft words. She was still asleep, but crystalline tears were falling from her eyes as she pleaded with an invisible phantom in her sleep.

"No, please! I don't know..." she said softly, and Inuyasha began to panic as more tears fell.

"Kagome," he began, gently shaking her shoulders to wake her.

"I don't have what you're looking for..." she mumbled, so soft that he wouldn't have heard if not for his superior senses.

"Kagome, wake up!" he shook her a bit harder, but her arm just wound more tightly around him. Her face contorted in fright, she whispered something that stopped his actions.

"No, Naraku..."

Naraku...

'What the fuck?!' he thought angrily. Was that monster scaring his Kagome in her dreams?! Was he doing this to her right now? Was he-

"Help me... Inuyasha..."

That stopped his anger from boiling over. She was dreaming of him, too. Of him, saving her.

He would have jumped for joy had she not been crying in her sleep.

"Kagome!" he said loudly, giving her an extra rough shake.

She bolted awake suddenly, her eyes popping open to revel haunted blue-gray orbs. Tear glistened in her eyes as she moved her hands to clutch the front of her robes tightly in her small fists. "Inuyasha?!"

"You're ok. It was just a dream..."

"Inuyasha!!"

He was once again dumbfounded as she pulled him to her, sobbing lightly.

But suddenly...

"AAAAAH! Hentai!" she screeched, pushing him off the bed and pulling all the sheets to herself, covering as much as she could of her thinly covered body.

oooooooooo

Sesshoumaru sat on a low stool beside his bed. He glanced down at the sleeping girl, who lay blissfully unaware of her surroundings as she continued to doze. Her cheeks were bandaged, hiding the five gash marks that nearly sent him into a mad frenzy upon sight. Her hands were curled around the thick comforter of his bed, her pale face nearly the same color as his sheets.

She had cried herself unconscious in his arms... in his arms... after all that time he spent fearing, but not believing, that she was dead. She was severely dehydrated, letting him know that the bastard Tarumo had been overworking her and underfeeding her for that past four months. It was a wonder she hadn't died.

That made a grin slide up his lips. 'Rin, stubborn as ever. Not even the most severe conditions could deter her. My Rin,' He thought fondly, absently hearing the pounding hammers in a nearby room. He had ordered his servants to prepare two female rooms – one for Kagome and one for Rin – just as he came through the door with Rin still sleeping in his arms. He knew his brother enough to know that he had been too disgruntled to think of having a new room made for his concubine.

After knowing how it felt to be away from Rin, he would never part with her ever again. With or without her consent, she would now be living in the Inuyoukai manor with him, Inuyasha and the Calderian. Living with Kaede may have been easier regarding Rin's training, but he could always have the old hag trucked over for her sessions.

A sharp, enraged scream cut off his thoughts, and he raised an eyebrow as he recognized it to be the Calderian princess' voice.

'Well... it seems I will be having an interesting morning.'

oooooooooo

"What are you doing in my damn bedroom!?" Dream all forgotten, Kagome shouted at the shocked hanyou that now sat dazed on the floor.

Inuyasha regained his senses after a second's delay. "What?! You're in MY bedroom, wench!"

"What are you..." Kagome started, but a quick assessment of the room she was in, and the bed she was on, told her that she was the one intruding on someone else's room. "Oh my gosh!"

"Well?!" Inuyasha rallied angrily, pushing himself up and brushing non-existent dust from his sleeping robes.

"Oh... I'm sorry," she said, flashing him a sheepish smile. "I kinda forgot what happened yesterday. Hehe..."

"Stupid wench. How could you forget that?! And why for fuck's sake did you have to push me off my own bed?!"

"I said sorry, ok?! I panicked! It's not like I'm used to waking up in the arms of full-grown men!"

"You'd damn well better not be!"

"What the heck do you mean by that?" Kagome shrilled, and to her great surprise, Inuyasha suddenly stuttered, fell silent, and blushed different shades of red. "What?!"

"Nothing!" he yelled defensively. "Now fix yourself up. I'll have some servants bring you your clothes. It's almost time for breakfast. Call me when you're through," he said, marching for his door.

"What about you? Shouldn't you be dressing up?"

"You want us to use the bathroom at the same time?"

Kagome blushed brightly, her mouth open in protest but no words came out. He only had ONE bathroom in his bedroom... why hadn't she thought of that?!

Inuyasha smirked, then walked out of his bedroom and shut the door behind him. Kagome heard him give his routine "she gets hurt, you get hurt" spiel to the guards outside the door, and a small smile began to tug at the corners of her lips.

'He could be kinda cute when he gets all possessive...' she thought fondly, before slamming her thoughts into a stop. 'What the heck? Why am I... probably because of last night...' she thought with a giant blush, her hands moving over the spot where just a few hours ago, a considerably sized bruise was. She thought about the previous night as she headed to the bathroom.

Commotion and tears of relief from Sango had greeted their return. She and Inuyasha had left the scene before everyone else, as he had no patience with the "slow" trucks. After Inuyasha "skillfully" dispersed the crowd of servants, they headed for Inuyasha's room, where she was to spend the night since her own room was still totaled.

She was huffing about the sleeping arrangements when she noticed Inuyasha's wounds. She panicked, and had immediately gone into "those wound need treatment" mode.

--- Flashback ---

Inuyasha sat dumbly on his bed as Kagome began ruffling around his drawers until she found a box of medical supplies. She ran over to him, placing the box down beside his feet as she rushed to the bathroom, reemerging moments later with a basin of water and a white washcloth. She brought the basin and cloth to him, knelt in front of him, and wrung the cloth into the cool water.

She then lifted the cloth to his chest and began to wipe away both the dried and fresh blood that still clung to his injury. Kagome held back a gasp as she realized that the wounds ran deeper than she would have liked to think, showing her glistening chest muscles that she sure as hell liked better when covered by skin.

"Ano... thanks for rescuing me and Rin," she said to break the silence.

"Keh, you shouldn't have expected any less. You're mine, and I don't like having my possessions stolen," he answered, and anger flared in Kagome.

"So, I'm just an object to you, huh?!" she said angrily, unconsciously dabbing a little too hard on his wounds. Inuyasha winced, and she instantly pulled her hand back. "Gomen..."

"It's not like that..."

"Huh?" she said dumbly. "What?"

"It's not like you think. I don't think you're an object. I know what and who you are to me," he started. "But I failed to protect you from Tarumo. You were kidnapped, for fuck's holy sake! And I..."

Kagome interrupted as she slowly pulled out a bottle labeled antiseptic, and a few rolls of gauze. "It wasn't your fault, Inuyasha. I had been too easy to kidnap, and..."

"No, I should have been there for you more," he interrupted her, fighting back a wince as she dabbed the antiseptic at his wounds with a cotton ball. "Instead I was out moping. I should be there to protect you. I promised to," as he said this, he reached out a hand to her neck, gently stroking it through her bandage. "And because I failed, this happened..."

"Inuyasha, this is literally just a scratch," Kagome protested, but for some reason, his slight touch on her neck sent tiny shivers down her spine. She gently pulled his hand back and finished applying antiseptic on his chest, her heart beating wildly. 'What was that all about?'

She then instructed him to lift his arms so she could wrap the thick bandages around his torso. He did so silently, watching her intently as she diligently bandaged him up. As Kagome stood back to retrieve the bowl and supplies to return to their proper containers, Inuyasha suddenly pulled her arm back and sat her beside him on the bed.

"Nani?" Kagome asked as she crashed on her butt on the mattress.

"You took care of me, let me take care of you," Inuyasha replied softly, not meeting her eyes as he slowly unwound the bandage from around her neck. As he did so, Kagome noticed that he was drawing closer, and they were only centimeters apart by the time he got the bandage off her neck.

His face dipped low, and Kagome was concerned as he took a deep breath from his position near her neck. "Inuyasha, wha..." a cold, moist something caused her to gasp and stop her words. She nearly choked when she realized it was Inuyasha's tongue, slowly licking along her wounds. She began to close her eyes, enjoying the small shivering sensations his actions caused her, when she caught herself. She placed her hands on his chest and held him at arms length away from her, surprised that she was panting slightly.

"What are you doing?" she asked, noticing that his hooded eyes were dazed and held not just a little surprise at his own actions, before hardening with resolve.

"I'm healing your wound," Inuyasha replied softly.

Kagome sat speechless, just staring at him as he drew closer yet again. A jolt of electricity went through her as he began to lick up her neck again, going over every laceration on her sensitive neck. Each languid stroke of his tongue caused her to unconsciously arch her throat towards him, and she closed her eyes as the strange feeling in the pit of her stomach overwhelmed her.

Inuyasha seemed to have a hard time stopping himself, but after bathing her entire neck, he pulled away almost reluctantly. Kagome opened her eyes slowly, surprised at how much Inuyasha's actions had affected her.

Inuyasha slowly led Kagome to his full length mirror. Confused, Kagome looked up and gasped, bringing her hands to her neck. "How did you... The bruises are all gone!"

"Told ya," Inuyasha replied. "Oh yeah..." he pulled a glittering item out of his hakama. "Here, I found this near the dungeon. You might want it back."

Kagome looked up and held her hand out, and Inuyasha put the item on her hand. "Inuyasha! It's my comb!" She exclaimed, holding the comb to her chest with a happiness that surprised even her. "Arigatou! I'm so glad you found it. I thought I lost it... Oh, thank you!"

"Yeah," Inuyasha said, his face uncharacteristically red, as he turned away from her and headed for his bathroom, snatching up his sleeping robes along the way. "Go raid my drawers for something you could use for sleeping. You're staying here with me tonight."

--- End Flashback ---

Kagome smiled dumbly to herself as she recalled the previous night's happenings. She pulled off the blue sleeping hakama she had borrowed from Inuyasha, as well as the thick green inner kimono she had snatched up as her sleeping robe. She recalled, as she rummaged some drawers for soap, how they had argued about sleeping arrangements, and had finally agreed on drawing a line made of a blanket in the center of the bed, and sleeping on opposite sides.

Of course, it never occurred to them that people moved in their sleep...

But still, the whole thing bothered her. She had still yet to know what she was supposed to be half a key to, and she had not missed what Tarumo had said before he sprinted... about them being the whole key.

It was disconcerting, and was something she knew to be important. Had she and Inuyasha somehow formed a strange bond? Sango had almost begun to tell her, but Tarumo just had to burst in as they sat down to talk.

It must also have something to do with how, or why, she and Inuyasha were suddenly surrounded by a shield when she absolutely thought that they were both about to die. Tarumo had said she had reiryoku, and Rin had agreed. Was the shield her doing?

Was this reiryoku, this spiritual power, the reason why her father had always tried his utmost to keep her out of harm's way? The reason why she wasn't even allowed in royal banquets?

At the thought of her father, anger that already seemed old, though undeniably the contrary, rose up in her. If her father were here, he may be able to tell her. But he wasn't... and it was because of Inuyasha.

Suddenly, all of the giddy feelings she was feeling about the hanyou earlier made no sense, made her feel guilty and angry at herself. How could she possibly think such things about her father's killer?

She suddenly realized that, it seemed, a tiny part of her had already started to forgive him, though the rest of her still seethed for revenge. It just so happened that his earlier presence had tapped into the forgiving part, but Kagome's hatred for him was still there, will always be there.

But the fact that a small part of her had already forgiven him so quickly was unsettling. He had killed her FATHER! Her own chichihue. He could not be forgiven.

She lathered some rather masculine-scented soap onto her arms, a scowl on her face. She had still yet to pass retribution upon him for killing her kind old father. But... after what had happened the previous night, she could not deny that maybe, just maybe, she and Inuyasha did have a sort of ... well, a bond.

With her being half of a key to SOMETHING, could it be that...

Her eyes widened, and she dropped her soap in shock.

The undeniable attraction between her and her own father's killer... the force field and Tarumo's words... Inuyasha's fierce over-protectiveness of her...

If she was half... could he truly be the other half of that key thing? And in a twisted sense... HER other half?

oooooooooo

Inuyasha slapped himself in agitation as he let the shower of water from his showerhead wash over him. He had run over after Kagome announced that she was done, desperately needing a cold shower after repeatedly thinking about the happenings of the previous night.

No matter what he did, he just couldn't forget the taste of her skin, the feel of her smooth neck against his tongue. And waking up with her in his arms had not in the least helped him forget. Though that WAS shattered when she dumped him off his own bed.

But then again, smelling her scent all over the shower, along with the scent of his favorite soap, was even worse. It was as if their scents had somehow meshed...

He immediately grabbed his thoughts out of the gutter. He could readily admit to himself that he was attracted to her. And he agreed with what Kaede said about it being uncharacteristic of him.

The way she had reacted when he healed her wounds... the way her scent gained that new delicious spice as he bathed her neck... It was all ingrained in his memory.

And the way her eyes lit up when he handed her back the comb – the comb that HE had given her, that she had worn EVERYDAY since the night he gave it to her – had made his blood simmer. She had seemed so happy to have it back, and he couldn't help but wonder if she was attracted to him as well.

'Dream on, hanyou,' he reprimanded himself. 'She hates your guts, and probably just sticks with you because she has to. It's not as if she has already forgotten that you were the one to kill her scumbag of a father. Besides, not because you're attracted to her, means she is with you as well.'

Flashes of the previous day came back to him, and the thought of how powerfully they had reacted when Tarumo had thrown that last ball of youki at them concerned him. The stupid bat had immediately figured out that they were the whole key, but Kagome was still in the dark. And how, in all the seven fires of hell, did they manage to make a barrier? He had never done it before. Was it instinct? Was it the Shikon no Tama coming to surface? Was it his wanting to protect her that drew out enough power to make that shield?

He sighed. Having Kagome with him made his life more complicated then it already was. If his suspicions were right, and he HAD somehow drawn out his powers, then there was a great risk that together, they may actually call out the Shikon no Tama.

Perhaps Kaede was right, and he really should have her trained. It would certainly not hurt her to learn how to defend herself.

"I had been too easy to kidnap..."

She was right. And he can't afford to have her kidnapped so much, coz that would just draw even more on their powers.

'Time to see Kaede,' he thought determinedly, quickly turning off the shower. He had to talk to Kaede as soon as possible. But first...

He had to eat his breakfast.

oooooooooo

"Take that trash, shove it up your ass and get the hell away from me!!!" Kikyo yelled, slapping back the breakfast tray held by Koharu and throwing everything onto the poor servant's face and clothing.

"How many times do I have to tell you all that I don't want to eat anything?!" she screamed, her face contorted with rage, but a strange coldness left her eyes devoid of feeling. Koharu would have thought that the princess was in a trance, if not for the fact that though cold, Kikyo's eyes were clear, and focused on her.

Koharu cowered, not knowing what to say, and a huge wave of relief washed over her when two guards, who had heard the commotion from their post outside the door, rushed in.

"Koharu-san? What happened?" one of the guards put his hand on her shoulder as he spoke. Koharu turned to find the concerned dark eyes of Miroku, and she threw her arms around him, shaken, as the other guard tried to reason with the unreasonably enraged princess. She heard someone outside the door screaming for someone to get the king.

"I... I was trying to give her the food as the cook had instructed me to..." she began, her face buried into Miroku's dark blue military uniform. "But she just..."

"I know," Miroku replied, placing his hand on the girl's back in a timid effort to sooth her. His gaze drifted to the food and broken bits of glass scattered all over the floor, and the juice still clinging onto Koharu's hair and blouse.

Kikyo had been difficult before, but she had become plain unbearable after the incident with Naraku. She had become even more closed off, refused her meals, and glared venomously at anyone who dared come near her.

Also, though he refused to say anything about it, Miroku noticed a slight shift in the princess' aura after she was taken hostage. She always had a regal, plain aura, screaming authority at everyone, but now... her aura had become... different. Intimidating.

He couldn't help but wonder if Naraku did something to her other than knocking her out.

The princess' downward spiral was worsened by Inuyasha's blatant disregard for her health. They all knew that the young duke had been too preoccupied with watching Kagome to even think of visiting Kikyo, but the obvious fact was driving Kikyo insane. He had never even been to the palace to visit her.

Miroku was knocked out of his reverie when a hard body was thrown against him and Koharu. The trio fell to the floor at the impact, and Miroku looked up to find that the person thrown to them, had been none other than the guard who had been trying to reason with the princess.

"Stay away from me! I don't want anybody coming near me, you understand? Leave me ALOOONE!!!" she shrieked, clutching madly at her hair, just as the horrified king burst into the room.

"Kikyo!" he cried, running to her, but she pushed him back with all her might, throwing him back as far as she had the guard.

"Get out!" she cried again, a few tears leaking from her eyes. Her whole face was twisted in fury, but the thing that scared them all the most were her eyes. Not because they were glowing, or piercing, or anything of the sort. Quite the contrary...

Her eyes... remained expressionless.

oooooooooo

Rin glanced up and down the hallway as she exited the bedroom she had been occupying. Empty. She stepped out, wearing the robes she had found at the foot of the bed.

Waking up alone had startled Rin, nearly making her believe that her rescue had all been a dream, but as she recognized the long-missed feel of soft sheets beneath her, she quickly realized that she was, indeed, finally safe.

She was clean too, and dressed in fresh sleeping robes. She had to wonder who had changed her clothing, and a blush covered her face when she realized that Sess might very well have been the one to do it.

She remembered the day before, and she remembered the half smile on his face as she came up to him... after all this time...

"I have missed you, my Rin."

'My Rin,' she thought fondly as she recalled how he had called her. His Rin... she had collapsed from the strain of the previous night, and she was quite certain that he had brought her home with him.

But why was she alone?

She slowly walked through the halls of the Inuyoukai manor, scratching at the itchy bandage on her cheek. She had almost forgotten how truly beautiful the mansion was. How the pure white walls would make you feel like you were standing in bleak nothingness, and how the blood-red draperies and outstanding decors seemed to call out and compete for attention, yet blend perfectly at the same time.

"Sumimasen? Hello!" She called out. Where was everybody?!

"Oi! Who goes there?!" a squeaky voice made Rin turn. The voice was familiar, but she couldn't quite place...

A squat green form suddenly emerged from around the corner. Ah, now she remembers...

"Jaken-sama!!!" Rin cried, running for the alarmed, toad-like creature who sputtered in indignation as she crushed him in her over-enthusiastic arms.

"Rin?! Oi, get off!!!" he wailed, trying to push her off. "So, you're the reason why the entire hall is deserted!"

"Nani? Me?" Rin blinked as she suddenly let go of the struggling youkai. Her? But, she just woke up! Not to mention, she just got there...

"Hai! I arrived only this morning, after that horrible conference at the Ebo star cluster. I heard that Sesshoumaru-sama had gone into battle last night, and came back with a girl. He left for his military duties just moments before I got here, but he had forbidden anyone to come up here as he left, so as not to disturb his new charge. I should have known it was just you..."

'Ebo cluster? Isn't that the same conference he and Myouga-san went to a week before I was kidnapped?' Rin thought. "You've been there for, how long, exactly, Jaken-sama?"

"Four months!!!" Jaken said in outrage. "Those people can never agree on anything, and after a decision is made, someone questions it, and we have to start voting and planning ALL OVER AGAIN! They are an exasperating lot, and I'm sure Myouga could attest to that."

'I've been with Tarumo for four months?! Oh gods! And Jaken-sama doesn't even know I was abducted...' Rin grinned as she figured out Jaken's lack of concern. He probably didn't even know what happened.

Jaken was still braying the idiocies of the people in the conference, and she smiled down at him in contentment. 'Well, at least life is back to normal... for now.'

"Jaken-sama?"

"Nani?"

Her stomach grumbled before she had the chance to answer, and she blushed as Jaken raised a non-existent eyebrow at her. "Can we get something to eat?"

Grumbling, Jaken turned and led her to the dining hall.

oooooooooo

The dining hall was just as she remembered. Rows upon rows of lights hung from the high ceiling, and the long dining table, where Inu and Sess usually sat at both ends of, was filled with mouth-watering food. She nearly forgot about Jaken at the sight and smell of all the wonderful food.

"Rin!"

Rin looked up at the sound of her name.

"Kagome!" she called back, rushing over to Kagome with a big smile, leaving Jaken sputtering in indignation. She was seated at the right side of Inuyasha, who sat at his usual place at one end of the long mahogany table. She was on a seat that was usually occupied by a man's wife, and Rin had to wonder if Kagome knew of that particular custom.

She noticed that the wounds were gone from Kagome's neck. "You're all healed already?! Sugoi! You're more powerful than I thought!"

Kagome blushed at her words, but Rin didn't notice, and just continued talking. "Or, maybe Inuyasha's traits are rubbing off on you! Sess-sama told me that Inuyoukai can transfer energies and abilities to their partners, and he must have given you his healing powers!"

Kagome began choking on her food, as Inuyasha began to cough rather violently. A nearby maid came over to pat the hanyou's back, and Rin just patted Kagome's.

"Inu-san, you ok?" Rin asked, and Inuyasha nodded distractedly, hitting his chest as he tried to dislodge the food from his throat. "Kagome?"

"Um..." said girl stuttered as she regained her breath. "Why don't you eat your breakfast Rin? You have a place setting with your name near the other side of the table."

"Oh, don't mind if I do!" she agreed, all else forgotten at the thought of food, running over to her place. She belatedly noticed that her seat was on the right of Sesshoumaru's, and a blush covered her cheeks as she helped herself to some... ooh, was that chicken?!

"Um, Rin? What is that?" Kagome asked, and Rin realized that she was pointing at Jaken. Jaken fumed at the thoughtless question, and nearly burst into flames of anger when Inuyasha began laughing at him.

"THAT, Kagome," Inuyasha said, snickers still bursting every now and then, "Is Jaken, a toad youkai, Sesshou's retainer. I didn't know you were back from Ebo. Which reminds me... where is Myoga?"

"He is still space-sick, Inuyasha-sama, and he is resting in his chambers," Jaken replied.

"This 'Myoga' person is your retainer, I presume?" Kagome asked Inuyasha, who just nodded and continued eating.

Rin was just about to take her second bite when she realized Jaken was bowing in the direction of the door.

"Inuyasha," Sesshoumaru's voice filtered into the hall, and Rin dropped her fork as she turned to look at him.

Sesshoumaru didn't even look at her as he walked into the room, intent on his brother. "Some representatives of Galaxia are here to see us. I know it is sudden, but this is important. They are in the King's conference hall. We cannot keep them waiting. Continue you meal later."

"But..."

"NOW ototo!"

"Alright! Sheesh!" Inuyasha said, slapping his napkins down on the table as he stood up to head towards his brother. Then, he turned to Kagome...

And kissed her cheek.

Kagome blushed hotly, staring in shock at an equally surprised Inuyasha.

"Um... bye," was all Inuyasha said, before he turned to his smirking brother.

Both turned to leave, but Sesshoumaru stopped by the door before going through it, and spoke to Rin without even glancing back at her. "I am glad you are well, Rin. Continue eating," he said. "Jaken, watch over Rin and Kagome."

"Hai, as you wish, Sesshoumaru-sama!"

oooooooooo

If Inuyasha weren't as 'mature' as he was, he would have been chewing off his claws. He was that nervous.

Three representatives of Galaxia – the most-powerful governing body of their entire galaxy – were seated before him, neutral expressions on their faces as they held notepads and recorders in their hands.

Galaxia ruled the Eloria galaxy – which Soldari, Calderia and many other planets were part of. Galaxia, which was composed of some of the most important people in all the other planets. They were "all-mighty" as some say.

So why were they hear to talk to him, again?

"So, Duke Inuyasha," the eldest one, who sat in the middle of the three, began, her wispy strands of bluish hair falling from her light bun. "We have been informed of the execution of Higurashi. Am I right in what I have been told, that you were the one to plunge a sword through his body?"

"Hai," Inuyasha replied, failing to remember the name of the representative. She looked rather familiar...

"Now young duke," a black-haired representative who sat by the eldest one's right said, crossing her legs and showing too much skin from her short black dress. "You are aware that your planet has no representative in Galaxia as of the moment?"

"Hai," he said, racking his brain before a name popped into his mind. Of course, she was the most popular member of Galaxia. "Yura-sama. The last Soldarian to represent Soldari for Galaxia was my father."

'Yura-sama... she's kinda pretty. Who would think at first sight that she was seven hundred Soldarian years old?' he thought as he eyed her legs. 'Gah! Hentai!'

"Higurashi had been outlawed by the council of Galaxia, and he had resisted arrest many times," the one to the eldest one's left commented. He was the only man among the three, old with large eyes that nearly popped out of their sockets. "He had taken the tenth decree too far. Now boy, am I right from what I hear that you, hero of Soldari, had taken Kagome Higurashi as your concubine?"

"Hai..." he replied uneasily. Now what did that have to do with anything?

"I see..." the old one replied. "Well boy, I am afraid you will have no choice but to hand her over."

"WHAT?!" Inuyasha raged, rising from his chair in anger and disbelief. "What the fuck do you mean, I'll have to hand her over?" he raged, forgetting his nervousness, and the fact that he was swearing rather loudly in front of three reps of Galaxia.

"Just as she said," Yura answered. "The woman is the daughter of a criminal, therefore, can be charged as an accomplice to her father's massacres. She will be executed for her crimes."

"You can't do that!" Inuyasha went up to their table, laying his palms flat on it as he leered at the council members. "She's innocent. I asked her, and she doesn't know a thing about her father's crimes. She didn't even know that there was a massacre!"

"Inuyasha, she is a Calderian blue blood," the male member said.

"I don't care!" Inuyasha rallied. "If Sess killed somebody, does that make me an accoplice, since I am his brother?! NO!" he cried angrily.

"Calm down, boy," the eldest began.

"NO! I cannot calm down when you are accusing my Kagome of crimes she had taken no part of!" he yelled, fisting his hands on the table.

Yura was smiling softly, looking at the old woman. "I see hot-headedness runs in the family, ne, Mareth?"

Inuyasha blinked. 'Mareth?'

"Aye, it does. I still remember Inutaisho screaming at the more dim-witted assistants whenever something causes him delay. Of course, Totousai here had to stop him before he tore down the headquarters," the old lady replied.

"Ah, it was not an easy task. The boy was stronger than a stampede of wild bulls," the old man, Totousai added with a chuckle.

'Totousai...?'

"Oi..." Inuyasha began, and Sesshoumaru, along with all the other Soldarians in the room cringed at his rude appellation of the three. "You guys... Totousai, you're the one who forged Tetsusaiga and Tenseiga!" he said in realization, as he remembered what his father had told him about his and Sesshoumaru's swords.

"Aye, 'tis me."

"And you!" Inuyasha said, pointing at the old lady. "You're the one who..."

"Who delivered you, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha blushed, nodding.

"And we see you have the tenacity of your father. Now, to get straight to the point of this visit..." Yura said.

oooooooooo

"So, that's what happened," Rin remarked as she and Kagome sat in Inuyasha's room, Jaken standing by the door with his horribly ugly staff. "I don't know what to say, Kagome."

Kagome just told Rin everything that had happened from the day of the Soldarian attack. She conveniently left out the fact that she still had not forgiven Inuyasha.

It was already late in the afternoon, and said hanyou was still nowhere to be found. The meeting with the Galaxia members had been over hours ago, as Sess had said when he walked into the house. He had been tight-lipped about the affair, and not even Rin, who he had done – Kagome snickered – that THING for, could coax it out of him.

All Sess said was that Inuyasha had gone into shock and had run over to Kaede immediately.

Eh?

"But really," Rin continued, a mischievous glint in her eye. "Inuyasha and you are truly still virgins?"

Kagome turned red, and Jaken snickered from his post by the door.

"YES!!!" Kagome exclaimed, a dark blush coating her cheeks.

"What a shame," Rin continued taunting the embarrassed concubine. "He's reeeally good-looking. Had he taken ME as a concubine, I would've jumped and ridden him right away."

Kagome stared in shock at her new friend. "Gods, Rin, you are such a pervert!" she screamed.

"What can I say? It runs in the family."

"Nani?"

"Oh, didn't you know?" Rin said. "Miroku-chan is my second cousin!"

"He is?!"

"Yep!"

The door suddenly opened, slamming the toad who had been leaning against it to the wall behind it. Inuyasha stood by the doorway, a rather glazed look in his eyes. He looked around in confusion, and seemed to regain his brains when he looked in Kagome's direction.

"Inuyasha! You're back! Eh, daijobu?" Kagome observed as he stepped into the room.

"Kagome, Rin... your rooms have been fixed."

Kagome and Rin looked at each other. "Ano... Inuyasha?" Kagome began. "Is something wrong?"

"Go to your room, Kagome. You should be able to add your own stuff now. Rin, your room is right across hers," he said distractedly, sitting on the bed as he began taking off his haori.

"Ok..." Kagome said slowly. "Come on, Rin."

Rin just nodded, then followed her out. Jaken came running through the door as they walked through, sputtering about Inuyasha being clumsy and irresponsible.

"I wonder what's wrong with him?" Rin asked. Kagome just stared at the door... worried.

oooooooooo

Inuyasha flopped back on his bed, shirtless, his mind on the rather weird day that had just passed.

After the members had left, he went straight off to Kaede to ask her for help in training Kagome. Kaede had told him to tell Kagome everything about the Shikon no Tama and their consequent relation to the holy item, and he had agreed, his mind still on what the members of Galaxia just told him.

Only two things were on his mind that day. Kagome. Galaxia.

Kagome was still in danger, and he needed to protect her. He wanted to protect her. It was something that had been ingrained in him since he first realized that there was something about her that drove him wild.

And that he had just KISSED her that morning. He didn't know what had spurred him to do that. He hadn't been thinking... well duh, maybe that was why. But how could he face her now?!

Galaxia. The council of heroes, elders and geniuses. The all-powerful legislative and judiciary body of Eloria. The were the most elite, the most highly-respected people in the galaxy...

And he had just been taken in.

It finally sunk into his numb brain.

"YaaaaHOOOOOOOOO!!!!" Inuyasha yelled, jumping to his feet and doing a little happy dance. "I'm a council member! Haha! Thank you, Higurashi!!!!"

It seemed his execution of Higurashi had been long in coming due to his crimes to the galaxy and the council. Only problem then was, Higurashi was a tough man to catch.

And upon killing him, the council decided that Inuyasha deserved an award. What better way than to make him a junior Galaxia council member? And who better to represent Soldari than the son of the former Galaxia assistant VP?

Albeit the title 'junior council member', he was, at present, the only Soldarian in the Galaxia.

Inuyasha grinned. Does that mean he could now order King Onigumo around? Keh.

oooooooooo

Kagome was in paradise. Her room was better than it was before, and her old room in Soldari was nicer than her room back in Calderia. She smiled as she admired the intrinsic paneling that she simply could not believe they had finished in less than a day. The walls were even brighter, her drapes looked grander, even her bed was bigger and much softer. Thank you, Tarumo.

Rin had grudgingly accepted Sess' "invitation" for her to live in the manor. He didn't want her to live in that hut near Kaede's anymore, and though Rin vehemently insisted that she was now safe since Naraku didn't want her anyway, He just couldn't be swayed.

In fact, the youkai had already gone and retrieved all her things from her hut. Rin had blown up and yelled that it was definitely embarrassing.

"Who would stay with Kaede-sama now?!" Rin had shrilled, but Sess just shrugged and said, quite plainly that "the hag would be fine by herself".

So the tact runs in the family.

A quiet knock on her door startled Kagome out of choosing which soap and which nightgown to use for the night. "Come in," she called.

"Kagome-sama," a small female voice called as the door opened, and Kagome immediately recognized the pretty face of the girl that entered her room.

"Koharu-chan, what may I do for you?"

"Ano..." Koharu began. "Inuyasha-sama says that he wishes for you to go to sleep right away so you would be fully-rested by tomorrow. He says you have a lot of things to talk to, and that he would be taking you to Kaede-sama's home after breakfast."

Kagome blinked. "Nani?"

"Ano, that's what he said," she continued. "Also, Sango-san asked me to pardon her for not attending to you all day. He and Miroku-sama had been sent out, and they had just returned a few minutes ago."

"Tell her it's alright," Kagome replied. "And tell Inuyasha that I shall rest early. I was just getting ready for bed."

"Right... and... he told me that he hoped you like your room."

That said, Koharu left the room, leaving Kagome blinking in surprise.

Why hadn't Inuyasha just gone over to her personally? He usually did just that anyway. Was he shy or uneasy because of something and – oh.

Kagome blushed as she remembered the impromptu kiss he had given her. No matter how much she tried to divert her attention, she always thought back to that kiss, and when Rin had been talking about perverted things...

'Ah!' she thought. 'Enough about this! Time for bed...'

oooooooooo

A/N: Well, that was it! I hope you all enjoyed, coz I sure as hell enjoyed typing this chap! Please review! Ja ne!

ScarletRaven1001


	9. Veiled Suspicions

A/N: First of all, I would like to apologize to everyone for all the typos in the last chapter, especially during the last scene. Hehehe... I have to admit, I was sleepy as I wrote that part. I'd also like to apologize for taking so long – again – with this next chapter. I got a bit carried away with my schoolwork...

So, ON WITH THE CHAPTER, I say. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Does anyone even read this? People shake their heads. I thought so. Anyway... I don't own Inuyasha and other related characters...

oooooooooo

A BOND OF THORNS

Veiled Suspicions

oooooooooo

Kagome sat up and looked out the window. She sighed as she noticed that it was the middle of the night, as her head reeled from the vestiges of her dream. It had been an odd dream, to say the least, and she just had to wonder what else her mind was conjuring up when she wasn't quite aware.

She barely even remembered her dream... all she knew, was she had seen her green dress in it – the green dress that she had worn to Inuyasha's awarding on her second day in Soldari.

Unsettled, she stood up and walked to her closet, hoping to find the beautiful gown in it. The dress had hung in her closet since it had been washed after the ceremony, but now that her room was different, she wasn't quite sure if it was still there.

She opened her white closet doors slowly, pushing back the numerous new clothing as she searched for the proper hanger. She very nearly gave a cry of relief as she found it, tucked into the corner. She had been hoping that it had not gotten ruined during the attack, and seeing it in perfect condition made her give a small smile.

She reached up to pull it out of the closet, and the moment her hand made contact with the dress, her dream came back to her like a portion of a memory.

It was of a woman wearing the same green dress, dancing in the arms of a silver-haired man... but it was not her, and the man was not Inuyasha.

The woman was beyond beautiful... her dark, thigh-length hair was straight, pulled back by a very familiar-looking golden comb. Her full ruby lips curved into a soft smile, her vibrant violet eyes sparkling as she looked tenderly at the man who held her.

The man could have been Inuyasha's twin, except the triangular dogs ears on top of his head were missing, replaced instead by a pair of elfish ones in the same place ordinary humans had theirs. Two blue streaks were on each of his cheeks, and his golden eyes, though full of mischief, beheld the woman with the reverence of a man who had been faced with his god.

'Who are these people?' she asked herself as she pulled the dress out of the hanger and stood with it before her new full-length mirror. 'The man looks just like Inuyasha... and the woman...' she tried to remember her dream once again, and as she thought of the face of the mystery woman, she gave a small gasp.

Her eyes were the exact shape of Inuyasha's, giving the exact same crinkle when she smiled. The only difference was the color of their eyes. The woman's violet eyes were captivating, but to her, Inuyasha's golden orbs were hauntingly enchanting. But the resemblance between Inuyasha and the dancing pair was uncanny... 'Am I... dreaming of Inuyasha's past? What... Why am I seeing these things?'

Disgruntled, and knowing that she could in no way sleep after that dream, Kagome bundled the clothing up in her arms as she reached toward her dresser to retrieve her comb, and headed for the glass doors that led to her room's balcony. She clutched the dress tightly and pulled the comb into her hair, as if willing them to tell her who those people had been, even as suspicion nagged at her – suspicion that she already knew who they were.

oooooooooo

He stood in the balcony overlooking the grounds, glaring the whole time at the tiny sliver of light that literally decided on his youki. The moon. Inuyasha raked his hands through his hair, anger brewing in him as he thought of how it would not be long before his powers waned... and he had still yet to find a foolproof way of keeping Kagome safe.

Her soft scent drifted to him, and he felt some of the frustration slowly ebb away. He did not know how her scent managed to calm him like so, but he did know that a whiff of her scent did strange things to his mind...

Meaning, he still hadn't gotten over that kiss.

He blushed to the roots of his hair, thanking whoever might be listening that it was dark. He slowly turned to look off to his right, where her room's small balcony looked out over the same courtyard. After the attack, he had decided that he didn't want her to be more than a few meters away from him, not even during sleep, and ordered the servants to fix up the room that was right beside his.

Kagome stepped out amidst the waves of silk curtains that hung before her glass doorway, holding a bundle of green cloth in her arms. Her skin glowed an iridescent hue under the pale moonlight, her golden comb glinting tauntingly at Inuyasha as he stared. The thin fabric of her nightgown left none of her graceful curves to the imagination, while making her look like an angel descended from heaven just for him.

She didn't seem to have realized that she wasn't the only one out on the balcony at that time of night, and she gave a small sigh as she inhaled deeply. She reached up with a hand to push her hair back from her face, oblivious to the entranced hanyou watching her a short distance away.

Inuyasha finally found his voice, and he cleared his throat loudly, startling Kagome, before speaking. "Kinda late to be stargazing, isn't it?"

Kagome looked at him strangely, and he cringed as he recognized a bit of wariness in her gaze. "I can't sleep. I had an... interesting dream."

Inuyasha tilted his head to the side as he regarded her, remembering that she had had a nightmare the night before that he still hadn't asked her about. His brows furrowed in worry, wondering if it was the same dream, and he hesitated before crouching and jumping off his own balcony onto hers. Kagome gave a small shriek as he landed, and he grinned as she slapped his arm in irritation.

"What?" he asked in a voice full of annoyance, even though he was grinning inside.

"You surprised me, baka!" she said with a huff, closing her arms more tightly around the bundle of cloth.

"It's not my fault you're so easy to surprise, wench," he retorted. His eyes suddenly narrowed in determination as he asked, "So, what was your dream about?"

Kagome gave him a disbelieving stare. "Since when did you have the right to know what I dream about?"

"Since I said so, bitch. Now spill it," he snapped, eyeing her with suspicion. "And don't say it was nothing, coz if it was, you wouldn't be here, unable to sleep!"

Kagome sighed, relenting, knowing full well that he wouldn't leave her alone until she did. She unfolded her arms to reveal what she had been holding to Inuyasha, and he raised an eyebrow at her.

"That's your dress. What about it?" Inuyasha asked, reaching out to take some of the cloth into his own hand.

"Has it always been my dress, though?" Kagome asked, averting her gaze when Inuyasha suddenly blushed and swallowed.

She continued. "I dreamt about a couple... dancing... and the girl was wearing this dress," she said, holding the dress up for emphasis. "Along with this comb in my hair. She had dark hair and purple eyes. And the man dancing with her... he looked just like you."

Inuyasha let go of the dress and turned away from her. It was obvious from his stance that he was intending to jump off her balcony and get back to his own room, but Kagome stopped him by grabbing one of his billowing red sleeves. He tensed. Against his better judgment, he glanced back at her and met her confused, concerned blue/gray eyes, and his resolve to just leave her crumbled.

She looked at him pleadingly, questions in her eyes. "Inuyasha... I dreamt about your parents, didn't I?"

Inuyasha turned to face her once again, his golden eyes full of wonder and other swirling emotions. "This dress," he reached out and took some of the billowing cloth in his hand again. "This belonged to my mother. It had been in storage ever since... ever since she died. I only had the heart to dig it up again when..." he hesitated. "Just now. Her death had been sudden and I couldn't bear to look at her things without remembering her."

Slow tears began to fill Kagome's eyes, understanding dawning on her. She had felt the same about her mother and her things upon the woman's death, and she opened her mouth to speak when Inuyasha's other hand reaching for her face stopped her. Their gazes locked, his scorching amber orbs piercing through her torrential blue ones, and her breath suddenly felt short. He cupped her cheek for a short time, making her skin burn, before slowly reaching up to pull her comb from her hair.

He held it before them both as he released the dress, avoiding her gaze as sorrow from barely healed wounds filled his heart. "This belonged to her too. She said that father gave it to her..." he cut himself off before he blurted out WHEN his father had given his mother the comb. He gave a cheerless laugh. "You saw dad in your sleep too? Lucky you... I don't even remember what he looked like."

Her eyes glittering with unshed tears, Kagome pulled the dress closer to her chest with one arm as her other hand reached out and clasped Inuyasha's hand, the golden hair ornament caught between their entwined fingers. She opened her mouth but no words came out, and before she knew it, she had pulled him to herself, the objects of their discussion trapped between their bodies.

The talk about parents reminded Kagome of her own parents, and of the circumstances surrounding her father's death... of WHO had been responsible. But strangely enough, she didn't seem to care. The only thing on her mind was how lucky she had been to have seen her parents, to have known them, even though the king and queen had never had a very harmonious relationship. That right at that moment, Inuyasha needed a measure of comfort that she felt only she could offer.

Inuyasha awkwardly wrapped one arm around her, as the other was still pressed in between them, holding the comb. Both of Kagome's arms were preoccupied with the items, and all she could do was hold herself close to his body. "Kagome..."

"I knew both of my parents," Kagome began. "But... okaasan never seemed to love otousan. And otou didn't seem to care for her either. They always fought, they never agreed on anything. I admit I was lucky to have met both of them before fate took them from me, but you are lucky to have had parents who were very much in love."

"They really did love each other," Inuyasha agreed.

Kagome looked up at him, the tears still standing in her eyes. "At least you know they're happy together in the afterlife," she gave a small laugh. "I doubt I can say the same about my parents. Okaasan was probably happy when she died since she didn't have to see otousan anymore. And now he just had to follow her!"

Inuyasha grinned, his heart skipping a beat. 'Is she... getting over her father's death? Has she forgiven me?'

Kagome pulled back from him, smiling up at him, and Inuyasha found himself already missing her warmth. "I miss 'em," Inuyasha admitted softly.

"I miss my parents too..." Kagome replied. "But since they're gone, all we could do is keep loving them and honor their memory."

Inuyasha nodded. "I guess," he mumbled, before leaving her side to crouch on the side of the balcony, preparing to go back to his own room.

He peered over his shoulder to find Kagome pinning her hair back with the comb, looking at him through her thick lashes, and he very nearly had to physically restrain himself from going to her and crushing her in his arms again.

"Go to sleep, Kagome. We have a lot of things to do tomorrow. We're gonna go see the old hag," he paused, tapping a clawed finger on his chin. "I'm guessing you'll be finding out about the key," he added before leaping off, and he disappeared into his room before Kagome could even blink.

Kagome gaped after him. "The key... INUYASHA!!! Come back here!"

oooooooooo

It wasn't until morning that Inuyasha realized that he had completely forgotten to ask Kagome about her nightmare from that night she had slept in his room. But then again, he hadn't been thinking straight... Who could do that with a beautiful girl in his arms?

He was determined to find out now, before they went off to the hag with Rin.

"Kagome!" he shouted as he banged notoriously on her door. "Open up, bitch! We have to leave in an hour!"

"Shut up already! I'm coming!" Kagome yelled from the other side of the door. A few minutes of shuffling later, Kagome walked out, raising an eyebrow in surprise upon finding him still standing there.

"Come on," Inuyasha said, grabbing her hand and dragging her off even as Kagome sputtered in indignation. "We'll eat breakfast, then go see the hag."

"Do you really have to call Kaede-baachan a hag? I really like her," Kagome complained as he pushed her onto her designated seat in the dining hall.

"Keh, she doesn't mind. And you have to eat... you're skinny enough as it is," he replied as he sat down, lifting his head when Sesshoumaru entered the hall with Rin. "Hey bro."

Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow at Inuyasha's greeting. "Hey yourself, Galaxian."

"Galaxian?!" both Rin and Kagome exclaimed.

"Umm..." he fumbled. 'Fuck... what do I tell Kagome if she asks...'

"You've been taken into Galaxia? Why?" Kagome asked, staring openly at him with questioning eyes. "When? Why didn't you tell me?"

"..."

"Yes, Yasha, do tell!" Rin chimed in excitedly as she took her seat. "So many things have changed in four months..."

"He just got accepted yesterday. That was why he was called before the representatives," Sesshoumaru added. "I sincerely doubt you would want to know the reason why he was accepted, Calderian."

Kagome's brows furrowed in confusion as she turned to look questioningly at Inuyasha. His head was down, and he seemed to be looking everywhere but at her.

Comprehension dawned on her as she recalled Sesshoumaru's words. 'I would want to know... unless... they awarded him for... for killing MY father?!'

"I see," Kagome said, before she stood up, not bothering with the food that was just then being served. "Excuse me... I'm not hungry. I shall be in the front garden if anyone needs me."

Inuyasha stared at the table as he heard Kagome's retreating footsteps, as her scent drifted farther and farther away. He raised his head and eyed Sesshoumaru. "I didn't want to tell her Sess. Why'd you have to do that?"

The youkai just raised an eyebrow. "You do not intend to tell her? You do realize that it would have been impossible to keep that a secret?"

"I meant to tell her LATER, but you just had to blab. I also didn't want to tell her that in THAT manner!" Inuyasha yelled, startling Rin. With a wicked, vengeful glint in his eye, Inuyasha glanced at Rin, before turning back to Sess. "You cross-dresser..."

Sesshoumaru's stoic face suddenly went up in flames, eyes widening uncharacteristically as his jaw dropped. Inuyasha turned and stomped out just as he heard Rin speak.

"Sessho-sama... what was Inuyasha talking about?"

oooooooooo

Kagome sat cross-legged alone in the middle of the garden – not exactly alone, as guards stood around her only a few meters away, by order of Inuyasha – as she tried in vain to sort out her feelings.

The cheerful atmosphere of the beautiful garden was lost on her. The butterflies fluttered merrily with the breeze as the delicate petals of the gentle blooms swayed with the wind, but Kagome never took note of the beauty around her.

She was confused... why was Galaxia doing this? Why was Galaxia siding with someone who had murdered a king in cold blood? It almost seemed as if they all wanted her father dead...

She shook her head in denial as angry tears pooled around the edges of her eyes. "Otousan..." she whispered as she turned her gaze to the sky. 'Why do they all hate you? Did you really do something wrong?'

"Was Inuyasha telling the truth about him?" she whispered again.

"He never lies, Kagome-chan," a feminine voice answered her question from behind and Kagome turned to face the one who spoke. "He is brash, he is loud... he is a duke and he is a soldier... he is a lot of things, but he is definitely not a liar."

Kagome turned as a smile formed on her lips... "Sango!"

Sango smiled as she approached slowly, then sat with her feet beneath her right beside Kagome. "The garden is beautiful, is it not?"

"Hai," Kagome agreed. A thoughtful look crossed her features and she turned to look at Sango. "Sango... you said you had been working here for barely two years? What did you do before?" Kagome asked as curiosity suddenly bloomed in her.

It took a minute for Sango to answer. "I... was a youkai exterminator. But before that, I was part of a group of vigilantes that worked against the king."

Kagome gasped. "You were with rebels?"

"My entire family was. But all that changed when my mother died," Sango continued, dragging her gaze to the ground to stare at the crushed grass around her feet. "After my mother died, we joined the king's army to avenge her."

"How did she die?"

Sango stiffened.

"Sango? I'm sorry for prying... I won't do it again... I don't know what came over me..."

"It's alright, you had to know sometime," Sango suddenly interrupted. "As for how she died... I don't know if you'll believe me but..."

"KAGOME!!!"

Both Sango and Kagome turned their heads to stare at the rather irate hanyou headed for them.

"What were you thinking, running off like that, bitch!? You could have gotten in trouble again!" Inuyasha bellowed.

Kagome cringed at the volume of his voice. "Gee, Inuyasha... I wonder just how much trouble I could get into with TWO DOZEN GUARDS all over me?"

Inuyasha looked over his shoulder to assess the said guards. "Actually, there's twenty-five of them..."

"Who CARES!?" Kagome screamed. "I can't even take a leak without guards hunkered all around me! What's up with that?"

"Just making sure you're kept safe!" Inuyasha hollered, and this time, even Sango winced at the sound. "Now will you shut up and come with me? I have to talk to you."

Kagome's eyes visibly darkened. "If it's about Galaxia..."

"It is, but I want you to hear about it from me."

"Oh!" the seemingly forgotten lady-in-waiting suddenly exclaimed, making both heads turn towards her. "Of course! Houshi-sama and I have just been informed this morning. Congratulations, Inuyasha! You're a Galaxian now!"

Inuyasha flushed. "Yeah, yeah. Now go and kill that lecher or something, Kagome and I have to talk in private."

Sango rolled her eyes even as she gave him a small, nearly mocking curtsy. "Hai, Lieutenant Colonel Inuyasha-sama, sir!" she said with a smirk. "I shall now go and kill off your best friend."

"You will... he's in the horse stables, probably flirting with Koharu."

"WHAT?!" Sango yelled as her cheerful gait disappeared, before she caught herself and blushed. "I mean... she's five whole years younger than him, that lech!" she added in a hurry as she stomped off fuming.

Kagome threw Inuyasha a dry look as Sango walked out of their line of sight. "If Miroku is found dead by tomorrow, I'll blame you."

"Keh," he snorted. "Now will you talk to me?"

Kagome sighed and nodded, knowing she didn't really have much choice in the matter. "Ok. Fire away."

Inuyasha suddenly grabbed her hand and began to pull her out of the manor. She blinked in confusion, and she looked back to find that the guards that followed her to the garden made no move to follow. Inuyasha was practically dragging her behind him, and she had no choice but to follow as he led her down the now familiar path towards Kaede's home.

Kagome sighed as the familiar shrine steps came into view. "What did you want to talk to me about?" she prodded as Inuyasha made no move to speak.

"I didn't know they would give me that award," he suddenly blurted out. "I didn't even know that what I did had been such a big deal."

Kagome stiffened, and she suddenly stopped walking. "You killed my father Inuyasha," she said bitterly. "You killed the ruler of a planet. It WAS a big deal."

"That's not what I meant!" Inuyasha said in exasperation as he spun to face her. "I know I killed him... I know he was a king... but when I killed him, I thought I was just doing my job. I never imagined that it would get me into Galaxia. The most I had expected was a damn promotion!"

"And so, since you didn't think that killing my father was a big thing, you decided not to tell me about being accepted into Galaxia?" she yelled, shooting him a fierce glare.

"No, dammit!" Inuyasha yelled back. "I didn't wanna fucking hurt you!"

"What the heck are you..."

"What could I have said, huh? 'Yo, Kagome, I just got into Galaxia as a reward for killing off your dad'? Shit, bitch! Give me ANY way to tell you that without seeming to rub it in your face," he shouted.

Kagome drew back as if she had been slapped. "I... you could have tried to tell me. Did you think it would have been better for me to find out from somebody else?"

"I was gonna tell you... but not yet," Inuyasha said resignedly. "Look... I told Kaede yesterday that we were gonna go see her. This is a very important matter Kagome... could we put this fight off for a few hours?"

Kagome blinked. His words from the night before returned to her, and she brightened. "Is this about the 'key' thing I keep hearing about?"

"Yeah, that. And that key... isn't exactly a thing," Inuyasha mumbled as he once again began dragging Kagome towards the temple.

"What do you mean?"

"I'll tell you when we get to Kaede, now shut the fuck up and walk!!!"

oooooooooo

Sango was surprised to find Koharu sitting alone in the stables. She was sitting atop a large block of hay, trying to take twigs out her hair.

The girl's clothing was rumpled, and she was sweating lightly. Sango walked up to her as unbidden suspicion grew within her at the young lady's unkempt look.

"Sango-sama!" Kouharu exclaimed as she came closer. "How long have you been here?"

Sango's brows drew together at the unexpected question. "Just now. I was passing by when I found you here. Are you alright?" she asked, lending the girl a hand to help her stand up. Sango noticed that the hay stack Koharu had been sitting on was not the same perfect rectangular shape as the other stacks, as if it had born the brunt of something heavy falling on it. She also noted the way some other wayward stacks of hay littered the floor, as if they had somehow fallen off the top part of the stable, where all the stable food was kept.

"Um... yes..." Koharu stuttered, a small blush coating her cheeks. "I was just feeding the horses."

"Oh," Sango replied as she looked around the stables. "Have you seen Houshi-sama?"

Koharu's blush deepened, as she vehemently shook her head. "No... I am sorry, I have not seen him all day."

The suspicion in Sango's mind grew as she turned away from the disheveled girl. 'There is something strange going on here...'

oooooooooo

Koharu waited impatiently for Sango to get out of view and earshot, before she softly called out, "You can come out now, Miroku-sama."

Miroku, shirtless and sweaty, came out from inside one of the abandoned horse stalls with a sigh of relief. "Gods... I thought she had seen us!"

Koharu blushed. "That would have been most unpleasant, don't you think?"

Miroku nodded. "Yeah... Koharu, thanks again for..."

"It was nothing," Koharu quickly interrupted him. "I wanted to."

"Thanks, still," Miroku insisted. "But I would appreciate it a lot more if you kept it secret. I'm not ready to let anyone know quite yet."

"The secret is safe with me, Miroku-sama."

"Good. Thank you. I have to go now," Miroku said, giving her a melting smile as he put on his blue military shirt before leaving the stall.

Koharu waited until she was alone in the stables...

Then she dropped down on the ground and began to cry.

oooooooooo

Kagome was confused.

She and Inuyasha had just emerged at the top of the shrine steps, when a good-looking youkai with blue eyes, a long tail and black hair pulled back into a high ponytail came out of Kaede's home. The guy spotted Inuyasha just as Inuyasha spotted him, and both had begun talking in nearly friendly tones... nearly friendly, if not for the various insults directed at each other that effortlessly spewed out of their mouths.

"I thought you had died during the last mission, wimpy wolf."

"You idiotic dog-turd. Did you really think that those simpletons would have been enough to get rid of me?"

"Keh. King Onigumo would have been enough to get rid of your lousy ass."

"I was surprised YOU pulled through. Tell me, what kind of accident helped you kill the bastard boss?"

"Umm..." Kagome interrupted the flow of insults.

"Oh... Kagome," Inuyasha began, pointing a thumb at the other youkai. "This is Kouga. Kouga, this is Kagome."

"I know her," Kouga replied. "I saw her at your awarding."

"You were there? How come I didn't catch wind of your disgusting scent?"

"Coz your nose is conked out?" the ookami replied, laughing when Inuyasha growled. "So, what are both of you doing here?" asked, before he turned to Kagome. "And what is a lovely lady like you doing with a loser like him?"

"Hands off, wolf," Inuyasha snarled. "Besides, don't you have a mate?"

"Ayame's at home. Insecure much?"

"Shut up."

"That reminds me... I have to go pick some things up for her and the new pup."

"I'm still surprised you managed to make a pup. Ayame must have led you through."

Kouga snorted. "As if you know all the mechanics. I'd be shocked if you could even get it up."

Inuyasha growled, a blush staining his cheeks, while Kouga just laughed. "Gotta go, dog-turd."

"See ya' wimp," Inuyasha called as Kouga seemingly disappeared in a whirlwind of blue.

"Who, exactly, was that?" Kagome asked as they continued walking towards Kaede's.

"Keh. He's a friend from the military academy."

"A friend? You insult each other like that and you call him a friend? I wonder how you speak to your enemies?" Kagome snorted.

"The insults go from way back. We never really outgrew it."

They stopped talking as they entered Kaede's house through the shoji that served as her door. Kaede was standing by a few cabinets, rearranging her vials. "Oi, baabaa! We're here!"

"Did you really have to be so rude about it?" Kagome commented as Inuyasha lead her to sit on the floor. Kaede just laughed as she sat down before the two.

"So, you're getting your way, old woman. Happy now?" Inuyasha growled, but Kaede just laughed him off.

"Quite," Kaede replied merrily. "Now I believe we have a lot to talk about. Shall we begin?" When both nodded, she smiled slowly. "Inuyasha, please leave the room."

"WHAT?!"

"You already know all the things that I will be telling Kagome. You don't have to be here."

"What are you talking about?!" Inuyasha snarled. "Where Kagome goes, I go. Or have you forgotten that being the senile old goat you are?"

"Inuyasha!" Kagome called, appalled.

"You must. Some of the things we are to talk about will not be fit for you to hear, as some things you already know, she should not know about," Kaede said.

After huffing once, more, Inuyasha left the house with a loud curse.

"Ah, finally," Kaede said. "I had been trying to get that boy to bring you here for a long time, but he simply would not budge! He insists that bringing you here will cause even more problems."

"But I don't even know why I'm here, right now," Kagome replied.

"Exactly. Now, we have much to talk about, so best we get started," Kaede began. "Is there anything in particular that you would want to know about?"

"Well, there is generally one thing that intrigues me..." Kagome admitted. "When Tarumo kidnapped me... he kept going on about a key. He had been ordered to kidnap me by Naraku, the same man who caused the stir in Inuyasha's awarding. Inuyasha told me something about a jewel, but he never really made sense. Kaede, why are they all after me?"

Kaede shook her head, muttering something about Inuyasha being a baka, before she spoke. "They are after you, my dear, because they want the Shikon no Tama."

"That's it! The Shikon no Tama... Inuyasha began to tell me about that once. What does it have to do with me? Why do they keep calling me a key?" Kagome asked anxiously.

"Because, my child," Kaede began. "You are half of the key needed to once again summon the Shikon no Tama."

"Huh?"

"The Shikon no Tama is an ancient jewel bearing amazing powers. A powerful miko sealed it thousands of years ago, spiritually cutting it into halves and sending it off to be unlocked again once the two halves of the key unite," Kaede said.

"I don't understand..." Kagome cried. "I don't have that half! I didn't even know what it was until today!"

"You do not have it physically," Kaede explained. "But you can, with the other half, somehow summon it, and bring form to the Shikon no Tama. That is why I had been insisting that Inuyasha bring you to me, so I can train your miko powers."

"Are you sure? I've never had any powers, Kaede-baachan. And wouldn't training me help me bring out that Tama thing?"

"No, if anything, training you will help you suppress your powers so you would not lose control and call upon it, which is likely since the other half is almost always right beside you."

Something Tarumo had said when the barrier appeared clicked in Kagome's mind. "Inuyasha... he is the other half of the key, isn't he?"

"That's right, and I wish to teach you Kagome. The Shikon no Tama is this planet's most powerful god element. It would not do for it to fall into the wrong hands by accident."

Kagome thought that over. "This planet's element... then how did I become half of this key, when I'm not even FROM this planet?"

Kaede looked thoughtful. "I do not know, child. But Naraku does not care, and he will try to get the jewel for himself. No matter what."

Kagome decided. "Then teach me what I need to learn, Kaede-baachan. And tell me all you can about the Shikon no Tama, Inuyasha, and Naraku."

oooooooooo

Inuyasha sat out on his balcony once again, his mind set on the woman sleeping in the room right beside his own. After they had come home from Kaede's as the sun began its descent, she had been exhausted from the basic meditation exercises that Kaede had taught her, so they went straight back to the manor.

Now, it was the middle of the night, and at about the same time yesterday, he and Kagome had been speaking about his parents on her own balcony.

He desperately wished for her to come out so he could speak to her again, but he had been willing her to do so for the past half hour, and so far, nothing was happening.

The previous night they had been talking about his parents. Now he wanted to talk about hers.

A strange dream had woken him in the middle of the night, a dream about a couple, both of whom looking vastly familiar...

They had been making love, and the woman had begun crying once they finished. She had clung to the man, whispering softly, sadly, and Inuyasha, try as he might, could not hear what they had been saying.

The man had leaned in, whispered something, to which the woman had vehemently shaken her head against, as if she absolutely disagreed with it, and she kept crying as the man desperately tried to make her tears stop.

The woman looked almost exactly like Kagome, had her eyes and hair not been deep brown. It was easy to conclude that the woman was none other than Kagome's deceased mother. The resemblance Kagome shared with this woman was uncanny, and had Inuyasha not known better, would have thought it was just Kagome wearing a brown wig. It had almost seemed like looking at a Kagome puzzle, but missing the parts that were her hair and eyes.

The man, however, though not sharing any outward resemblances with Kagome, was the missing part of the puzzle. His deep, blue-gray eyes had carried the exact same sparkle as Kagome, and his jet-black hair, though short, was as lustrous as the girl's. Kagome had definitely gotten those features from him.

The most puzzling thing about Inuyasha's dream though, was the fact that the man...

... was not, Lord Higurashi.

oooooooooo

A/N: Another insane chapter, from yours truly. Haha... I am finally opening up the real plot.

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Please read and review.

ScarletRaven1001


	10. Insurrecting Darkness

A/N: Ehehehe... It's been a while, ne?

But I have an excuse, I swear! Basically... I was busy with schoolwork. And schoolwork in this country, and in my school in specific, is no joke. Ask Wraith, he knows.

Anyway, to answer all those questions, yes, I will definitely finish all fics even if it kills me, even though Feverish is in hiatus. I just lost my brains for that story.

Here's the next chapter, people. Please review, enjoy!

oooooooooo

A BOND OF THORNS

Insurrecting Darkness

oooooooooo

"She needs to quit the training, Miroku. She's always so tired... I can't stand seeing her like this," Inuyasha complained to his bestfriend while they sat in the main room of the Inuyoukai manor early one morning.

"I really don't know what to say, Inuyasha. Kagome needs that training. You know it, I know it. Everyone concerned does," the monk replied. "Besides, it's only been a month. Of course she has to adjust. Her powers had been latent all her life and now Kaede's grilling her on a daily basis."

"That's just the thing," the hanyou snapped back. "Kaede's killing her. Have you seen those burns on her hands? The only good thing is that the training helped heal that burn on her leg."

Miroku was confused. "What burn? I thought the burn was on her hand?"

"That's different, moron. I'm talking about the one on her leg, you dolt! The one she got that fucking day we stormed Calderia. It's just a light scar now. Anyway, all that training and shit, and we still don't know much about those 'powers'."

"I am sure you will know something about them sooner or later. And those dreams of yours, do you know what has caused them, yet?"

"No. And I've had virtually no time to talk to her lately. She leaves home with the guards before I wake up, and by the time I get home, she is already asleep. The only times we get to talk are when we wake up in the middle of the night and end up talking on her balcony."

"Palace duties taking a toll on you, my friend?" Miroku asked sympathetically.

"Hell yeah. Ever since I got into Galaxia," Inuyasha grumbled. "Funny thing is, I never even knew that one person could have so much work. Onigumo isn't helping much... moping around because of Kikyo, not doing _his_ damn job, so sometimes I have to do it and..."

"Speaking of the devil, how _is_ Kikyo-sama? Has she gotten any better?"

"No. Seems worse, actually. She's been eating a bit, but she never utters a word anymore," Inuyasha replied, thinking back on how the princess had looked when he last saw her. "She was pale, I mean _really_ pale. She's also gotten so thin that I worry about her sometimes. And it's worrisome because it's already been a month."

"Don't worry, I'm sure she'll be fine eventually."

"Yeah, but still. Anyway..." Inuyasha got up, stretching before picking up a bagful of work from where it had been beside him. "I gotta go to the palace now. Coming, lech?"

"Sure."

oooooooooo

"Keep your mind on your work, child... make the reiryoku flow through your hands... not so much!" Kaede instructed as Kagome, sweaty and dizzy from exertion, tried to do the old channeling spell Kaede had taught her.

Kagome was becoming very good at it. Indeed, Kaede had a small inkling that the girl was born to be a miko, what with the ease she had with adapting to the training and learning all the tricks. She had already halfway mastered most of the basics.

But she seemed distrated today.

"Kagome, enough,' Kaede suddenly said, and the girl's concentration broke just as suddenly. Quite unusual. "Is something wrong, child?"

"No, I'm sorry, Kaede-baachan. I just seem to be having some difficulties today," she said, even though her eyes did not even focus on the old woman.

"Why don't you just tell me what has you so distracted, then?" Kaede insisted, watching Kagome lower her eyes to the burns on her hands. "Do your wounds pain you, child?"

"Iie. They don't. I'm just..." Kagome hesitated, "Inuyasha..."

"Ah, your lord. Has _he_ been bothering you about the training again?"

Kagome laughed softly. "I do not think he would _ever_ stop bothering me about the training. But that's not it. What I'm concerned about is the dreams. I have told you about our dreams, ne, baachan?"

"Hai, and I personally find it strange. Have you asked Sango about it?"

"Sango?" Kagome asked, confused.

"Aye, the child was a youkai exterminator, with a very broad knowledge about youkai," Kaede explained. "Since we are dealing with Inuyasha, who is part of the most powerful youkai families in Soldari, you may want to ask her some things."

Kagome thought for a while. "I think I will... arigatou, Kaeda-sama."

"Oh, and since you seem so distracted, why don't we skip today's training and work for a couple hours longer tomorrow instead?" Kaede suggested.

Kagome positively beamed. "Arigatou, Kaede-baachan!"

Kaede became serious though. "But I must warn you, child. Your powers are open and slightly vulnerable. Though you are trained, it will not do for you to be caught unaware."

oooooooooo

The chamber had not seen a shard of light over the past month, and its sole, angry dweller, thrived in the gloom. Laying in bed, staring up at the ceiling, she impatiently waited for the first command from him... from he who would give her the one thing that she truly wanted.

As the faint ball of dark red light slowly materialized in the middle of the room, she bolted up, racing to grasp her hope in her hands.

"Yes!" A hoarse cry was wrenched from her parched lips as the orb slowly became more solid, and now resting on the palms of her pale hands. "It's about time, anyway..."

She walked back to her bed, holding it reverently, her thoughts racing wildly. With it, she can finally have the only thing that she ever really coveted, and no one can stop her now.

oooooooooo

Sango knew Kagome was coming before she even called out to the taijiya. It just tends to happen when the other person is always followed by an entourage of almost two dozen feet.

"Kagome-chan, how have you been? I haven't seen you in a couple of days," she greeted, giving the princess a friendly hug.

"Alright, I guess. But these guys," she motioned to the guards, "are driving me _insane_! And don't laugh... you try walking around with ten men all day."

Sango snickered. "It's for you own good, Kagome-chan."

"I dunno. I kinda liked it better when it was just Inuyasha dragging me around the place," Kagome replied distantly, and Sango had to wonder if the girl was aware of how her voice had suddenly turned wistful, and how her right hand had gone up to stroke the golden comb in her hair.

"Come now, Kagome!" Sango said. "Has it been that bad?"

"YES!" Kagome shrilled. "I barely see him anymore. And the last time I spoke to him, we argued over a damn burn in my hand."

"It was pretty serious, Kagome. And even I can see that it hasn't quite healed yet," Sango said in defense of the overprotective male. "So, why the visit?"

"What, I can't visit my old lady in waiting anymore?" Kagome said teasingly. For some reason, about a month ago, Sango had been given a new assignment – a secret something that she worked on with Miroku – and Kagome had been given a new lady in waiting. Koharu was excessively nice, but she liked Sango better.

Sango was giving her that look again.

"Ok, ok," the girl amended. "So I wanted to ask you something. Private," she whispered, looking over her shoulder at her guards. "But how?"

"Leave that to me," Sango replied, then turned to the guards. "Guys, you're all dismissed for the day. Go back to the Inuyoukai manor, I will take care of Kagome today, and I will bring her back to the manor before sunset today. Understood?"

Much to Kagome's surprise, all guards executed swift salutes in the taijiya's direction, along with a crisp "Hai, Sango-sama" from each. All then turned and marched back to the manor.

She turned to her friend. "You could do _that_, and never told me! What have you been ding these past few weeks?"

"Let's just say I've been promoted for a reason I myself have yet to understand," Sango replied, leading her friend into her house. "So, what's up?"

Kagome looked uneasy as she sat on one of Sango's couches. "Inuyasha's been paranoid lately. He says it's been to quiet for too long. And he's convinced that our powers have triggered something odd between us..."

"Like?"

"I dunno. Well, for one... I dunno if I've told you this before, but during dire times we could feel each other's emotions," Kagome stuttered. "Like that time at Tarumo's... when I got scared, he said he felt what I was feeling, so he knew I was in trouble. And right after I burned my hand two days ago..." she paused, unsure. "He said he felt the pain, and somehow knew it was me. So he rushed over from the palace to check on me. And that was the fight you saw," Kagome giggled at the memory.

Sango looked thoughtful. "Kagome, that could be an effect of the fact that you two are the two halves of the key. It's entirely possible that your common powers are linking you enough that you could actually sense the other's aura."

"Yes, Kaede said the same, but that doesn't explain why we have been having dreams of each others' pasts and..."

Sango had gone very rigid. "What did you say?"

"Huh?"

"You have been dreaming of each other's pasts? Kagome, why didn't you _tell_ me!" Sango asked, bolting up and pacing the room in agitation.

"Huh? Well, it didn't seem like a big deal. We were just dreaming about little things, anyway, like my seventh birthday, his first fist fight, things like that."

"It was important Kagome. I can't believe you two have already taken such a big step!"

"What do you mean? So it really isn't an effect of the Shikon no Tama?"

"No, it's not Kagome. So, why? Why didn't you tell me that you and Inuyasha had initiated a youkai mating?"

"WHAT!" Kagome yelled, standing and grabbing the pacing taijiya's arm. "We didn't do that, Sango. What are you talking about? I think I would have known if we had done something like that..."

"You mean, you haven't?" Sango asked in confusion, shaking her arm out of the miko's grasp. "Then why have you been dreaming about those things? That's usually the first effect of youkai coupling. Particularly if the youkai involved come from a naturally possessive breed."

"I don't know! Kaede told me it wasn't supposed to be part of being the key..."

Sango was thoughtful. "Have you kissed him?"

'I wish,' Kagome thought, paling as the thought made itself clear in her mind. "No. Seriously, no, I haven't! Why?"

"Odd, indeed. Because if you had kissed him, or he had kissed you, and one of you had tasted the other's blood in some way, that would have been an act of initiation..."

The rest of Sango's words faded away after Kagome heard her say the words 'tasted' and 'blood'. Because the fact was he _did_ taste hers... when he healed her wound after the Tarumo incident...

"... and funny because he may not even really _know_..."

Kagome never heard Sango's lectures. Her thoughts were in a whirl, and she could barely graspo one long enough to truly dwell on it.

'He's a youkai... he had to have known. Does that mean that he had initiated it, without my consent? That he knew what was happening, and he didn't tell me?'

"... especially if either one of you had gotten even _slightly_ aroused..."

Oddly enough, Kagome wasn't as mad as she thought she should be. To her, it seemed inevitable, almost seemed _alright_, that Inuyasha had done such a thing – what with her being his concubine and all – and she was just slightly surprised.

"When did this start, anyway, Kagome-chan?" Sango was still talking.

Kagome snapped out of it with a bewildered blink. "Umm... soon after Tarumo kidnapped me. The night before I began my training with Kaed-baachan," she replied numbly.

"Well something must have happened. Maybe he accidentally licked your wound or something!" Sango laughed, clapping Kagome's back, _hard_.

The miko barely noticed.

oooooooooo

"Kyaaaaaaaaaaah!" the scream, coming from the Soldarian princess's bedroom, startled everyone out of their work. Inuyasha, whose office was just one floor below her chambers, raced out and was the first one to get to her.

Kikyo was thrashing wildly in her bed, staring in fright at something on the ceiling. Inuyasha glanced up to see what she was screaming about, ready for action, but found nothing but the plain white boards.

He looked back at her as he heard the other people begin to file in hurry in the hallway outside, and got the shock of his life.

She was frightened. Truly, inexplicably frightened, and her normally cold eyes showed nothing but her utmost fear.

"Kikyo!" Inuyasha yelled, running to her as the others began to fill the room behind him. He reached her bed then grabbed her arms, shaking her out of whatever was happening to her. "Kikyo! Snap out of it! Kikyo!"

And just as suddenly as the screaming began, it stopped, and Kikyo was left staring at the ceiling in absolute silence. Her eyes began to clear, then she turned her head, and her gray eyes met Inuyasha's golden gaze.

Her lips trembled as her hands reached out, touching his cheeks, as if trying to see if he was truly there. "Inuyasha?" she whispered, and as her hands convinced her that he _was_ Inuyasha, a more desperate cry was ripped from her parched throat. "Inuyasha!"

The hanyou was confused. He had never seen her look so... innocent and afraid. And the same, hollow eyes that kept him at bay all those years, were now gazing at him with naked fright and confusion.

He was even more shocked when Kikyo suddenly hauled herself up, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck and sobbing like there was no tomorrow. She was repeatedly crying out his name, and he was at a total loss at what to do.

"Kikyo-chan?" the King's voice sounded, and Kikyo immediately broke away from him as her father's voice came into view beside Inuyasha. She launched herself at her father, fat tears rolling down her cheeks as she chanted "otousan", over and over again.

Inuyasha had never felt so helpless.

oooooooooo

"The moon is waning really fast, ne Sango-chan?" Kagome asked innocently. "It will be a new moon soon. My second new moon here..."

Sango, whose mind had been wandering aimlessly earlier, snapped into attention at the mention of the waning moon. She looked up, barely concealed alarm on her face. "Oh my, you're right!" she replied, then in a softer voice not meant for Kagome's ears, "I wonder if Inuyasha knows."

Kagome lifted an eyebrow in confusion, but chose not to dwell on Sango's odd behavior for a while. She sighed dramatically as the manor came into view, along with the ten odd men Inuyasha hired as her guard detail.

"Well, here we are, Kagome," Sango said as she opened the gates. "It's getting late anyway, you'd better go to bed. From what you told me, Kaede would be grilling you again by tomorrow."

"Yeah, I bet. Besides, Inuyasha's gonna have a cow again if he sees me awake at this time. And I don't want him mad at me if I wanna talk to him about these dreams."

"What do you mean?" Sango asked.

"Well, maybe it's a youkai thing, but I remember from last month, right before the new moon, Inuyasha was in a rotten mood. Then I didn't get to see him at all the night of the shingetsu. I'd better go and avoid it starting now, ne?" Kagome joked cheerfully, oblivious to the shocked look on Sango's face.

"Hai, you'd better. Now go, your guards are waiting," Sango replied, winking.

Kagome huffed crossly.

oooooooooo

"Hey Kagome, where've you been?"

The question surprised the miko, making her close the door a little too hard. She turned around, eyes frantically searching for the source of the voice, only to find Rin staring at her from one of the chairs in the common hall.

"Rin-chan. I didn't see you there," she remarked. "Do you know when Inuyasha will be back? I have to talk to him about something."

"Oh, I don't know, gomen," Rin replied. "Actually, I was hoping you would know where he and Sess-sama are. I heard that the princess just broke out of her shell this afternoon."

"Really?" Kagome asked, surprised, and even pleased at the news. True, she and Kikyo weren't exactly on good terms, but she couldn't help but feel sorry for her at what happened during the awarding ball.

"Hai. You think they'll be home really late?"

Kagome shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe we should just go to bed. Then we can both get up early tomorrow and corner them before they leave for work. I'm sure Kaede won't mind if I'm a bit late."

Rin brightened at the mention of the old woman's name. "How is Kaede obaa-sama?"

"Oh, she's doing well," Kagome replied. "She misses you, but I think she disagrees with Sess-san that you could stop your training already. She doesn't want you to be unprepared for any possible danger."

Rin sighed. "I tried reasoning with him, but he is just too stubborn! I swear, he'd mark if I'm not looking just so he could make me do exactly everything that he says!"

That did not help put Kagome's mind at ease.

oooooooooo

"I'm bushed," Inuyasha replied, pushing limp bangs out of his eyes. "I can't believe that her waking would cause so much racket."

"She is the princess, you idiot. Of course it would cause much discord!" Sesshoumaru replied.

"Yeah, but still! It was too much."

"You wouldn't be saying that if it had been your woman regaining her wits after more than a month of blank anger."

"Yeah, but it wasn't Kagome, so to hell with your logic. I just wanna go home," Inuyasha very nearly whined even as the manor drew nearer.

"And you will be home in a while. I for one, can also not wait to see what Rin has gotten into today," Sesshoumaru said, a hint of amusement crinkling the corners of his eyes.

"Should I get my head out of the gutter?" Inuyasha asked with a snort as Sess turned incensed eyes on him.

"Yes. That remark in no way infers anything of sexual nature, you hentai."

"Anything for you, crossdresser."

"Shut up."

The carriage finally came to a stop before their front door, and the brothers slowly made their way towards it, eager to just sink into bed at the first chance they got.

The moment the doors opened, the shrill voice of an overly excited woman made both brothers wince and curse their sensitive ears.

"Sess-sama! What took both of you so long?" Rin asked, moving towards the startled brothers.

"Work," Sess replied curtly, to which Rin just pouted.

"It's so late! Kagome and I had been trying to wait up for you, but she got too sleepy and went ahead to bed," she said, taking both brother's coats and hanging them upon a rack Inuyasha had never taken any particular interest in.

"Well, Sesshoumaru, Rin, I dunno about you guys, but I'm going to bed. Still have a lot of fucking work left to finish, and I still have to talk to Yura about that new battalion they're building near this cluster," Inuyasha said, partly to himself as he began slowly climbing the stairs.

The walk to his room seemed unbelievably long, and by the time he was standing beside his bed, he was exhausted and just craving to feel the soft sheets beneath him.

He was just about to lie down, when he heard a scream from the room beside his, followed by what felt like a strong wave of youki clashing with a very familiar reiryoku.

"Kagome!" he shouted. Fatigue forgotten, he dashed out of his room – a sense of deja vu filling him – and straight to the source of the sound.

oooooooooo

She was dreaming – she was positive – and it was undoubtedly one of her stranger dreams. She was dressed in something thin and filmy, standing in the middle of a crowded banquet hall, with people dancing around her, oblivious to her existence even as they bumped into her at times.

She looked down at herself, confused as she regarded her attire... it was the night dress she had been wearing the night Calderia fell. She checked her legs, right on the spot where she had been burned that day, and found that her leg was smooth and flawless, as if it hadn't received such an injury.

Looking around again, she gasped as the sight finally registered. She was standing in the middle of the banquet hall back in her palace in Calderia.

The Calderian flag waved tauntingly at her from its place in the farthest wall, right where the king's throne was supposed to be located. Leading her gaze down, tears filled her eyes as they settled on the much-missed image of her father.

"Otousan!" she cried and ran, mindless of the people bumping her as she did so. She stumbled as she came near, making her land in a teary, undignified heap at her father's feet.

"Otousan!" she cried again, clutching at the hem of his robes. Confusion clouded her mind as her father looked down, staring at her in puzzlement.

"Who are you?"

Shock filled her as he stood, assessing her in something akin to disdain. From her mussed hair, down to her nightgown clad body and bare feet, the king sneered in contempt at the sight of her.

"Otousan, it's me! Kagome! Your daughter!"

"Ku ku ku..." her father chuckled, and Kagome winced at the strange sound. "No you're not."

"Father, what are you..."

The king's eyes hardened. "No musume of mine would betray me for my killer!"

As the words left her father's lips, all the festivities suddenly crumbled, leaving behind the burning, wrecked castle that Kagome had left behind. The fires, raging furiously, did nothing to wake Kagome from her shocked stupor, even as she felt her leg begin to burn once again. All of a sudden, everyone around her was dead or dying, their eyes piercing accusingly at the back of her head.

Her father suddenly sank to the ground, and Kagome panicked and knelt down to him at once. "Father!" she cried, horror filling her as the blood began to flow through her father's torso and spilled out his open lips.

"Kagome..." he rasped, eyes pained and betrayed, "I loved you so much, daughter. But you betrayed me... how could you!"

"No father!" she cried, tears spilling unchecked down her cheeks. She ignored the growing pain as her burn reappeared, looking even nastier than it had been before. "I will never – I never!"

"Yes you did," the king said angrily. "You are living with Inuyasha, my killer! And do not even deny that you are beginning to feel deeply for him. You have disregarded the fact that the hanyou had killed _me_! How could you! You have fallen in love with the man who killed your own father!"

"No!" Kagome yelled. "Never... I hate him! I will never forgive him for what he did, father. Never!"

"You lie... you have even mated with him."

"No, I didn't know. Father, I love you! I can never forget that it was he who took you away from me, that he was one of the people who destroyed Calderia!" she begged him to believe her. He just had to...

"Do you want to avenge me, daughter?"

"Yes," she answered almost automatically, even as something poked at her from the back of her mind. "I do, and I will, father, I swear!"

"Then I want you to take his life," the kings rasped, "in exchange for mine."

Kagome gasped. "You wish for me to kill him father?"

"Why do you ask me that in such a way?" King Higurashi sneered. "Afraid you can't do it? Because you have fallen in love with your father's killer?"

"NO! Anything, I will do anything to let your soul rest in peace, otousan. Tell me what to do."

"Very well," the king replied. He then laid out his hands in front of Kagome, and the miko watched as a dark red light appeared on her father's palm. Slowly, the light took form, then receded, revealing a small, gold-encrusted dagger.

"Take this dagger, my beloved daughter, and stab him through the heart with it," the king said as Kagome stared in shocked awe at the sharp weapon her father was giving her. "He is youkai, so an ordinary weapon will just give him a wound and will heal. A wound made by this," Higurashi motioned to the knife, "Will be his undoing."

Kagome carefully took the knife, holding it to her chest with two hands. "This... will kill Inuyasha?"

"Yes. Kill him before he does something to you!" he said, the smoke growing thick and making his words sound even more forced. "He has already forced himself on you by initiating a mating without your consent. Kill him before he takes you and corrupts you!"

"Father..."

"I want you to hurt him in the worst way possible. Gain his trust, then take his life. Let my soul rest!" he yelled, and Kagome watched in horror as her father slowly faded from her vision.

Kagome called out to him, cradling the knife to her chest. "Father, no! No! OTOUSAN!"

oooooooooo

"KAGOME!" Inuyasha yelled as he burst into the room, right as the last vestiges of the sudden burst of youki faded into the night.

'Someone was trying to hurt Kagome while she slept!' he realized, and he rushed over to her, shaking her still form. "Kagome! Wake up!"

Kagome's eyes snapped open, and he reeled back slightly as her gaze – for just a moment, but a moment too long, in his opinion – settled on him with pure, unabashed hatred. Then, just as quickly as it appeared, the look was gone, replaced by teary confusion as the girl suddenly pulled him to herself.

"Inuyasha..." she breathed. "I had a dream..."

"What about?" Inuyasha asked, crushing her to himself.

"I... I don't remember," she whispered, burying her face in her chest. "I'm scared..."

"It's alright, don't worry," he reassured her, his hands finding their way to her back, tangling in her long raven tresses. "I won't let anything hurt you..."

They stayed there for a long time, Inuyasha comforting Kagome, her trying to calm down, and it was a couple of hours until Inuyasha was finally convinced that she was alright.

They had talked, and the hanyou was shaken to find out from Kagome that Sango believed that he had unintentionally begun to claim her as his. Kagome was surprised to know that Inuyasha was currently working on helping build a security battalion to surround the Eloria Galaxy. All in all, both had used the short time to catch up on the other's lives, and by the end, Inuyasha had promised to find out more about the mating initiation, and Kagome had sworn to be more careful during her trainings with Kaede.

"You're sure you're alright? Should I send Koharu in here?" Inuyasha asked softly, holding on to her arms as he sat at the end of her bed.

"No, thank you. I'll be fine," she said, smiling at Inuyasha's worried expression. "Oh, stop it, Inuyasha, I'm ok! It was just a bad dream. I can't even remember what it was about!"

"Ok. If you're sure," he said hesitantly, still holding her gently. "If anything comes up, just holler, get it?"

His eyes were so full of concern... his brows drawn together in worry and his full lips pinched, showing that he was still very anxious. His golden gaze was captivating, and Kagome found herself feeling rather light-headed in his presence.

"Yes," she whispered, surprised at how breathless she sounded.

Inuyasha was looking dazed, gazing at face, her lips, and he found himself thrilled at the small hitch in the miko's breath. Her eyes had widened a tiny fraction, and unconsciously, both felt themselves leaning closer... their breaths fanning over the other's face, the soft lull of their heartbeats and the heat of the moment making them close their eyes as their lips slowly, shyly came together...

"Inuyasha?"

The call from the other side of the door startled them both, making Kagome jump back to the far side of the bed and almost bumping against the headboard. Inuyasha leapt off the bead and growled at the interruption. "We're fine, Rin. Go to sleep!"

Footsteps sounded and faded, showing that Rin had indeed gone back to her room.

Inuyasha sighed, cursing whatever Gods that were definitely laughing at him at that moment. "So... I'll see you tomorrow, alright?" he said, looking anywhere but at her.

"Ok," Kagome replied, not looking up as she heard Inuyasha walk out of her room.

Just as the door closed behind him, Kagome gave a huge sigh, slumping against her headboard. 'What was that!' Kagome screamed in her mind, shaking her head as she began to pull her sheets back over her form to go to sleep again.

Until a queer glint on her bedside table caught her eye.

Puzzled, Kagome reached over, grasping two things at the same time as she reached over. Opening her palm, she saw that she was holding her golden comb, and right beside it was...

She dropped both objects suddenly as if they burnt her, her dream rushing back to her as she stared at the object beside the comb given to her by Inuyasha.

The dagger from her dream.

It glinted tauntingly at her, reminding her where she was, what she was, what she had lost...

And just who had been responsible.

It was the same man she lived under the same roof with, the self-same man who had just a few moments ago been in her room, holding her to himself as if she was _his_.

The same man she had nearly kissed.

Tears filled her eyes, coursing down her cheeks as she picked up the dagger, holding it to her heart. 'How?' she asked herself. 'How did this get here? My dream, was it a sign?'

The words of her father from the dream flew around her head, filling her chest with a guilty sort of pain.

_I loved you so much, daughter. But you betrayed me... how could you!_

_You are living with Inuyasha, my killer!_

_You have fallen in love with the man who killed your own father!_

The tears came faster, her chest heaving with the exertion.

"Have I really?" she asked softly, pain wracking her very soul. Had she really fallen in love with him? Maybe it was just because of the deal with the Shikon, maybe that was why she felt like this...

_You have fallen in love with the man who killed your own father!_

She remembered the near kiss from just a few moments ago, and how her heart had screamed when Rin interrupted...

She shuddered in guilt as she remembered just how much she wanted that kiss...

_You have fallen in love with the man who killed your own father!_

NO! She can't have... 'I couldn't have... It's wrong!'

_Do you want to avenge me, daughter?_

Did she want to? Could she kill him?

_Do you want to avenge me, daughter?_

Yes, she had to... in honor of her father's memory.

oooooooooo

A/N: Done! Yay, I'm done! That was kinda long, but I guess that could be my sorta 'sorry' for not updating for so long... Hehe...

By the way, thanks to all those who reviewed, namely:

Litwolf689: here's the update! Sorry for taking so long...

sakurakitsune14: oh, that wasn't an affair, really! Hehe...

jhon: here's the update!

AnimeAngelz: hehe... sorry for taking so long, but here it is now!

dragon's kitty: yep, just about... and that's where my plot really starts, hehehe...

Realsmartz: your name fits you so well... real smart! You are sooo almost right in that guess of yours about Kag. Hehe...

AnimeObsessionFantasy: yeah, hehehe... thanks for the review!

Thanks again, and I mean THANK YOU so much for reading my fic. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review this one too. Til next chapter, ja!

SR1001


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